For Honor - The Unity that Binds
by MissBlackRock
Summary: The three factions have fallen into a time of peace. The Vikings remain in Valkenheim, recuperating from their losses. The Samurai dwell in the Myre, relishing their newfound Emperor. The Knights continue to manage Ashfeld, growing stronger. The people of each faction can finally rest easy. Right? Rising on the horizon, something new can be seen. Is it a friend, or foe?
1. Chapter 1 - Exposition

**Hello, my name is MissBlackRock. This story right here is the sequel to another For Honor fanfiction named **_**"For Honor – The Path to Love", **_**which was my first ever attempt at writing a For Honor story. It ended being a love story, which was, Fun Fact: unintended. But it ended up doing really well, and was very well received. Obviously, it's ****HIGHLY recommended that the first story is read before this one, otherwise you'll have zero idea of what's happening, or who the characters are.**

**But without further ado, here I go. Back with the below-average writing. I hope everyone reading enjoys.**

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**The Samurai… **

After the events with the Urutora and Seinaru Clans within the Myre, the Samurai were at a standstill when it came to their leadership. With the Hakushi Province—the Myre's largest city—burned down, the Samurai had little idea what to consider their powerhouse. For a time, a large city under the name Amaterasu's Gate was made into the Myre's central capital. The Gate was formerly under the control of the Seinaru Clan, which was led by the Kaneko family. After the massive battle in the Hakushi Province, the assassination of Atsuto and Airina Hakushi, and the imprisonment of Daigo Kaneko, the Myre followed the rule of the Seinaru Clan until Daigo was released from prison, and took the rightful name of the Myre's Supreme Emperor after fairly serving his punishment in prison.

Upon his release, the very first courses of action that the young Emperor took upon himself were to rebuild the Hakushi Province and restore it to power, to merge the Urutora and Seinaru clans into the anticipated Saikyo Clan, and to repay the Azure Legion—an allied legion from Ashfeld—for their assistance in the recovery process of the Myre.

In order to pay respects to the Urutora Clan and the Hakushi family, Daigo took it upon himself to make the Hakushi Province the capital of the Myre, the powerhouse of the clans, and to honor the city's origins through the Saikyo Clan's efforts of unity. The armies of the Urutora and Seinaru clans were fused together, their royal families became acquainted and housed in the restored Hakushi Manor, and the city was filled with residents from all over the Myre. The newborn Saikyo Clan's ultimate objective was to bring unity and peace among the Myre in order to end its constant civil wars and state of turmoil. In time, Kaneko hoped to complete this objective with enough effort.

Now crowned as the Supreme Emperor, Daigo rules over the Myre vigilantly and responsibly. The internal conflict in the Myre has decreased, and the people are showing hope for a bright future under a young, powerful ruler. While it is true that mistakes were made in the past, the Emperor's sins were atoned for, and it was time to move forward with the progression of the Samurai people.

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**The Vikings…**

Following the events of Ashfeld's Martial Arts Tournament, and the collapse of the Warborn, the Vikings were once again placed into a state of rejuvenation. The activity of their Raider clans decreased as village plundering became less common, and the common villagers and farmers of Valkenheim got the opportunity to live in relative peace. The people began to build back their destroyed villages, plant crops in order to stock up food for the snowy winters, and of course, enjoy themselves while doing it with food and drink. Hunters began to set out for massive game, young boys were chosen to be warriors and eagerly began their training, and the remaining Warborn leaders sat idle, searching for a suitable new leader for their clans.

Lower in the mountains laid the large villages and towns, bustling with people and life. Walls were built and more guards began to be trained in order to keep Valkenheim well-guarded from any potential invaders. In the cities, officials prospered as their people began to work vigorously, taking advantage of this brief period of peace.

Up higher in the mountains, where snow fell often and where it was much colder than at a lower height, the warrior clans lived to the very extremes of mother nature. They continued to face frigid, chilling conditions with their iron skin and fiery wills. Warriors were trained up in the mountains, taught to endure the winter's cold. They were taught honor, compassion, pride, and valor. Though the Vikings did not have any belligerent plans in mind, they thought it useful to always have strong armies ready for just about anything.

Despite taking hardships and crushing defeats, the Vikings held strong, and always seemed to return just as powerful and ruthless as they were before.

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**The Knights…**

Ashfeld and its many legions of Knights remained steadfast in their own person efforts and achievements. Internal fighting was the main issue between the issues, similarly to the Samurai, but unfortunately, the only difference between the Knights and Samurai was that the Knights were overly adamant on serving the legions they perceived as their families, and sought to live and die by their sides instead of having to conjoin into another legion.

The Knights of the Iron Legion continued their quarrels with the Blackstone Legion, their fighting and disagreement always seemed to show no sign of stopping. The reasons why they fought were trivial and frivolous, mostly due to the efforts of the Blackstone Legion's leader and warlord, Apollyon. Despite the strength of the Blackstone Legion and its obvious rule over Ashfeld, the Iron Legion's persistence is what kept them running alongside the large legion and its armies. The Iron Legion had allies in which they put their trust in, and would not stop doing so for a long time to come. Among these allies were the Azure Legion, the third strongest Legion in Ashfeld.

The Azure Legion had grown rapidly, and had gained much fame recently due to the own personal efforts of their well-trained Heroes. Not only did the Azure Legion win Ashfeld's Martial Arts Tournament, but they also were the ones who eventually ended up claiming responsibility for bringing down the Warborn, and stopping the Vikings from tearing through Ashfeld. The fourth strongest legion, the Elio Legion, attempted to falsely take credit. It wasn't until the Azures revealed their secret, admitting to having been using Elio disguises to get behind the Warborn's front lines. Witnesses and survivors of the Hero attacks that took place up in the mountains of Valkenheim confirmed these claims. Finally, the Azure Legion's involvement in helping the Samurai has gained them a good reputation with the Emperors of the Myre, proving them to be useful, powerful, and trustworthy allies.

These new winnings have earned the Azure Legion recognition, reputation, and honor, as well as fortune. The Legion now focuses on expanding the number of outposts they have laid out through Ashfeld, while also expanding the size of their three main Fortresses. Walls are being expanded, fortified, and remodeled. More people are beginning to move in, growing the population. With more people, comes more potential soldiers, and with more soldiers… more Heroes. Their fields are growing, more food is being produced, trade is becoming highly efficient for profit, and the officials and commanders overlooking the Legion are proving worthy being able to handle the rapid growing process of their people. Out of the three large Fortresses that the Azure Legion had, Fort Lapis, Fort Sapphire, and Fort Diamond, the Heroes that were mostly responsible for achieving the Azure Legion's victories resided in the biggest, most reputable of the three, which was Fort Diamond.

Within this fortress resided the Azure Legion's most powerful general. The leader of the Azure Legion, Cinderus Alphus. This man was recognized and known by most people in Ashfeld, especially within the walls of Legions that were smaller and weaker than the Azures. The Elio Legion's rivalry with the Azure Legion had recently begun to crumble, mainly because the Azure Legion was beginning to push much too far from the Elios in order for them to keep up. The top two Legions, the Blackstone and Iron, recognized Cinderus as a wise, educated man. He had two trusted Commanders, who just so happened to be his own two children, Cinder and Cindra Alphus. The Diamond Legion was run by a Board of Directors. Alongside the General and his two Commanders, Lords were appointed as the remaining members of the Board. Three of the more predominant Lords were named Alban Saldivar, Airi Hakushi, and finally…

Emora Ryon.

These three members of the Board were also Heroes who took part in bringing down the Warborn, and in helping to repair the Myre after very unfortunate events that involved imperial issues regarding marriage, and the fusing of two clans within the Myre. As mentioned before… the clans in the Myre have fused under the Supreme Emperor's rule, and the issue has long been resolved. The former royal family of the Myre, the Hakushi family, has been retired. Now, with the Kaneko name leading the Myre, Hakushi was free to marry the love of her life, the widely-known, popular, and reputable Lord Ryon. Alban Saldivar, a trusted friend of these two Heroes, now works alongside them in the Board of Directors to properly manage Fort Diamond.

Emora Ryon, a young, impressionable, emotional, and still-growing Warden was known throughout Ashfeld as the Hero who won the Ashfeld Martial Arts tournament with a stylish kiss. She led a group of Heroes up the mountains of Valkenheim, and was the one responsible for assembling the well-built teams in the first place. Finally, Emora Ryon was… unfortunately the cause of the Myre's troubles, due to intervening when… it was admittedly, not her place to do so. But because she did, the Myre is now better off, and the Warden was able to redeem her own mistakes through the restoration of the Hakushi Province within the Myre, and the crowning of Daigo Kaneko as the Supreme Emperor of the Samurai. This unique Warden is now on the brink of becoming even more well known. Despite her flaws, she continues to work hard to prove herself, while keeping her modesty, humility, and honor intact.

She continues to uphold the traditions, values, and oaths of a Warden, while maintaining steady, strong connections to her friends, loved ones, and allies. She continues to train and work hard, keeping up her physical strength, learning new combat techniques, acquiring skills in new martial arts, and bettering her own health with smarter life choices. She continues to show love to her wife and fellow Hero, Airi Hakushi, keeping her loyalty, affection, and heart in the right places, always making sure that the sanctity of her bond with the love of her life is forever strong. And finally, she continues to be herself. The same woman she was when she was a child, a teenager, a trainee.

Now, all of these values will be challenged as a new threat rises over the horizon. The Factions are unsuspecting, all of their guards down. The time is perfect to strike. In this world, after the cataclysm, peace is nothing but a false hope. Peace is something that cannot be. Peace is all but a reality, a preach that lying mouths yell out in order to bring unity among a slather of fools. The Factions were formerly at each other's throats, doing everything they possibly could to try and rid themselves of each other. Now… this new enemy emerges that will easily be able to vanquish this old, ancient way of thinking. The only way to survive…

_Is through unity._

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**That'll be it for the first chapter. This story was heavily delayed, but I figured I needed to get **_**something**_** out to get it started. We're hitting the ground running with this one, because there's no reason not to. **

**Also, I tried to briefly summarize the events of the first story during these paragraphs of reminiscence, but it's obviously better to have read the first. So just as a reminder…**

"_**For Honor – The Path to Love" **_**is the first story. Can't know how a character can be without knowing who they are.**


	2. Chapter 2 - The Squire's Heroes

It was a warm summer day in the lands that made up Ashfeld, with clear blue skies overhead, a cool breeze from the northern winds that carried fresh air through the fields, a pleasant warmth from the glamorous sun, its rays of light bathing the green pastures of Ashfeld, nurturing its many natural resources. Every day was like this in Ashfeld, with the constant bickering of countless Legions seeming to never end, the people simply began to get careless, before losing interest as a whole. The Knights were living in relative peace, save the occasional skirmish.

The Iron Legion was hard at work at tracking the Blackstone's Legion activity, watching their every move carefully, as it shouldn't be a surprise that the Blackstones were always planning something behind their large, impenetrable, black walls. The Elio Legion was doing its best to maintain itself, working to make alliances, and keep itself from collapsing, as internal conflict between the Legions of Ashfeld was all too commonplace. The dozens of minor Legions remained in peace, doing what was necessary to get by and supply their villages and people.

One Legion in particular was bustling as it always was. The Azures of the Azure Legion were continuing to live about in peace and efficacy, their busy days always seemed to be ahead of them. But of course, with such a marvelous end result in the minds of its people, the Azures worked hard to maintain all that they had built, for their own sakes, and for the sake of those young'uns that came afterward; the ones who would make up the future generations.

The Azure Legion had quite the bountiful population spread throughout its three major fortresses. But the main stronghold of the Azure Legion, where the Prime General—or leader, founder—of the legion as a whole resides, Fort Diamond, was the grand central point of the legion as a whole. Covering up a massive span of land, surrounded by lush greenery and bountiful space for fields and crops, alongside two rivers that rested less than a couple dozen acres away, oakwood forests for lumber, and rocky wastelands for mining, Fort Diamond was a wonderful place to call home.

Of course, this meant that the Fortress had many people living within it, its many markets and plazas always bustling. The fortress was so large, that it was separated into multiple different quadrants. Each quadrant had its own plaza and market, along with its own residential areas and recreational attractions. On top of that, Fort Diamond had three surrounding towns outside of it, that it also took responsibility for protecting. In the center of the Fort was the grand plaza, and some of the more predominant stone structures, such as the Conference Buildings, the central dungeons, and finally, the Hero Barracks.

Because of its high population, Fort Diamond had much room for militarized forces. Within the fortress, there were barracks constructed both in each quadrant of the Fort, and in the outside towns surrounding the Fort. However, in the center Hero barracks was where the best of the best was taken to be taught; where only the best soldiers of each generation were trained from the ground up, to become Heroes, and not just standard Azure Legionnaires. But even then, some Heroes are better than others. The additional structure that was located in the center of Fort Diamond was the living quarters _of_ those best Heroes. Fort Diamond gave these nine top Heroes the honor of forming their own team within the forces of the Azure Legion, known as Alphas.

The Alphas were the best of the best, the sharpest of the sharpest, the smartest of the smartest. From the formation of the group, it was determined that there could only be nine, and only nine, Alphas; not one more, not one less. The other two strongholds of the Azure Legion, Fort Sapphire and Fort Lapis, lacked their own teams of Alphas, due to Fort Diamond being recognized as the Alpha Fortress of the Azure Legion as a whole, and therefore warranted the ability to have a team of Alphas. This team of Heroes were recognized across Ashfeld as some of the mightiest warriors of the land, and earned their title of Azure Alphas.

It became the dream of any Azure Legionnaire in training to one day become an Alpha of the Azure Legion; to be able to work alongside the leaders of the legion, and to be recognized among the best fighters in all of Ashfeld. For this reason, many Heroes from other Azure strongholds frequently emigrate to Fort Diamond to seek further training and guidance, in the hopes of one day being able to become an Alpha. For legionnaires already born in Fort Diamond, this dream was only stronger.

In the Azure Legion, boys and girls who wished to become warriors of the Legion, and to become official Azure Legionnaires began their training at the age of 12, a ripe age where the children were both strong and smart enough to be able to properly process the training that would follow soon after their initiation. Unlike standard issue legionnaires, who began their training at a much younger age, those who aspired to become full-on Heroes had to wait. At age 18, they would go through their full recruitment, becoming official Heroes of the legion, working in, around, and with the Fortress itself, but not yet being able to set out on outer missions. At age 20, Heroes were fully able to perform their duties without restrain and were authorized to participate in outside affairs.

But before becoming Heroes, a long road of intense, fierce training laid ahead. The process was overall short to the outside eye, but getting through it was what truly mattered. Basic training at age 12, the Hero Academies at age 14, the Hero Barracks at age 16, basic Hero initiation at age 18, and finally… after making it through it all, complete Herohood at age 20.

As anyone knew, Heroes were the driving force of any Legion's military force, as they were superior to normal legionnaire knights in every way. They were harder, stronger, faster, and better trained. Heroes had an unmatched level of valor and determination, along with the authorization to make their own strategic decisions in battle. They typically worked in groups, and even the Alphas were no different. Every good warrior knew that people fought better together, and with Heroes, working as a unit was what made them so powerful. Along with the raw willpower in their hearts, their training also played an important role in what type of Hero someone would end up being. When being trained, trainees who aspired to be Heroes were separated into different barracks for their training. There were only four Hero academies in all of Fort Diamond, one in each of the four quadrants. Those in the outside towns surrounding the Fort had a harder time getting into these academies.

These academies came right after the first two years of basic training, and began at age 14. Getting into the academies themselves was difficult, as one had to prove their own worth once reaching the right age in both physical, and mental trials. The academies kept the would-be Heroes in training for another two years, and their form of graduation was their admission into the central Hero Barracks and their official Hero title being given to them. Courageous knights were titled Wardens, delinquents were titled Conquerors, the more modest were titled Peacekeepers, and the powerful were titled Lawbringers. Of course, masters and teachers of the academies were not strictly Knights, and Samurai and Viking associates were there to teach non-Knight trainees during their training, and to assign them their own types of Hero classes.

Unfortunately, many of the trainees sometimes were not selected into the Hero Barracks, and were instead returned to standard military training, as only the best performing trainees were selected to attend the Barracks. Each of the four academies had roughly 200 trainees. Only about 60 of these trainees, 15 from each of the four Academies, actually manage to make it to the Hero Barracks to finally become true Heroes. The entire process was rigorous, challenging, frustrating, demanding, and difficult. Those who managed to make it into the academies at age 14 were already above-average warriors, but those lucky 60 out of 800 graduates were even more remarkable.

The Hero Barracks was the last step. At age 16, the final two years of training began. Those who made it all the way through were the ones that became Heroes. Those who did not, were once again sent back into standard military service to be trained as Captains. The 60 or so trainees that made it past the Academies were trained up thoroughly and even more rigorously than before. Out of the roughly 60 aforementioned trainees in the Hero Barracks, only about 20 became Heroes. Trainees would quit, be denied, or were sometimes even be forced to stop because of injuries suffered during the intense training. In rare instances, trainees were killed during training on accident. Despite being rare, it still occurred from time to time.

Overall, becoming a Hero was only meant for those who were willing to go through hell and back. It was for those who were willing to experience some of the most painful, extreme, and stressful training that all of Ashfeld had to offer. It was this challenging road to Herohood that made the Azure Legion's Heroes so capable and formidable. It took a strong heart, a calm patience, a flaming resolve, and an iron soul to make it all the way through. For most, becoming a Hero was seen as a respectable, yet silly thing to do because of its difficulty.

"_You want to be a Hero? Tsk, yeah right."_

"_You, a hero? No way, you're too soft! You'd never make it."_

"_What's the matter with you?! Why would they ever accept you of all people."_

"_Jesus Christ, they'll kill you in the training alone. Just quit while you're still alive!"_

"_Seriously? A hero? Just… settle for being a normal legionnaire or something."_

"_I admire your enthusiasm, I do, but… you have to be realistic, come on."_

People sometimes did not believe in those young ones who aspired to be Heroes. As mentioned before, becoming a Hero was not only a test of one's physical prowess and mental smarts, but it was also a trial of the individual's emotional strength. This was something that many trainees had to endure, and for some, the emotional aspect of the process was the most difficult part of it all. This applied to who was now a high-ranking Lord of the Conference Board, a popular Warden, and a responsible, modest, adorned Hero. The blonde Knight who now known as Lady Ryon went through this training, and was now in the position of the mentor, looking back on her own experiences in order to help the Heroes of the future.

In the large complex that laid in the center of the Fort Diamond's great plaza, in the middle of the four other quadrants of the Fortress, the Hero Barracks could be found with the 60 finalists of the Hero training program. It was a new year, and the trainees were all young 16-year-olds who were ripe from the Hero Academies, ready to work hard for the next two years to train as a Hero. Today, they were going to get to meet the Alphas, and one particular trainee was very excited to get to meet them.

The only issue was that this trainee was a bit too young to be in authorized in the area. The main reason was because she simply wasn't a trainee that was supposed to be attending the Hero Barracks. Despite her status, she still wanted to meet the Alphas, and she could only think of one way to get to talk to them again…

* * *

**The Central Plaza…**

The sound of rapid footsteps could be heard through the large center plaza straight through the bustling sound of people trading in the markets and going about their days. One could hear the sounds of horses neighing, workers loading large wagons, farmers bringing their merchandise to their stands, merchants trading and selling to avid buyers, and a whole lot more commotion from the younger teens in the Fortress. The footsteps were resonating from a pair of brown leather boots, adorned with golden buckles and white laces. These were strong, durable boots that were typically donned by young squires in training. This particular squire was rushing to make it to the Hero Barracks in time, as she was told by an older friend of hers that her and her class of trainees would be meeting the Alphas at around this time.

The young squire looked up to the sky, the sun right above the Fortress, shining its warm, lively light down on the plaza and on her pale, delicate skin. Her blue eyes shimmered brightly, twinkling radiantly like diamonds, her pupils dilating as the sun's light hit her eyes. Her skin was fine and cream-colored, her nose small and smooth, her lips soft and pink. The girl was breathing in and out through her mouth as she ran, her cheeks beginning to grow more and more rosy the more she ran. Her long, healthy blonde hair was fashioned into a single loose braid that ran down her back and dangled wildly as the girl continued to run. A few strands of that bright, golden blonde hair got into in front her eyes as she ran, causing the girl to occasionally bring a clean, fragile hand to her face to rid her vision of its curse. Panting desperately, she slid to a stop as she arrived at a large complex of stone-walled buildings, a tall steel fence guarding its entrances.

"Oh…" The girl groaned, bringing a hand to her brow to wipe sweat from her forehead. She tucked a few strands of her fringe behind her ear to clear up her vision more. "It's noon, so… Amybeth should be meeting them soon. But…"

The girl paused to take a look around. The Hero Barracks was more than just a single building. There were two dormitory-like buildings for the 60 Hero trainees to live in, two for each separated gender. Then there was the studies hall, where all the boring bookwork and standardized teaching was done for the scholar-academic side of becoming a Hero. Finally, the largest building of the Barracks was the armory section, where the weapons and training gear was kept. Indoors, there were training halls stuffed with equipment, such as weighted clothing, training dummies, sparring arenas, and other things of that nature. There was even a small dust-based courtyard out front for outdoor training and martial art demonstrations for the public to get in on. Overall, the Hero Barracks was almost always blooming with life, as there were small social areas in the complex as well, adorned with pretty little gardens and wooden tables and benches to lounge about on.

Not too far from the Barracks, other important establishments could be easily located, such as the central dungeons, the Conference building, the home of the Alphus family, and finally, the home of the Alphas. The central plaza was by far the most bustling area of the Fortress, as the wealthier inhabitants of four other quadrants were typically gathered here to do business with other people of similar economic status. Of course, the quadrants were not all that divided, but differences were bound to happen. Additionally, the three outside towns surrounding the gargantuan Fortress that was Fort Diamond were typically also regarded as "lower" than the quadrants inside the Fortress itself, which was… unfortunate, to say the least.

To the girl, the central plaza was an astonishing place to be in. She hailed from one of the three outside towns of Fort Diamond. The three towns were titled after different types of outdoor figures, as the main purposes of the towns was to grow farm crops and mange nearby forestlands that were outside of the fortress and its quadrants. The towns were named Woodbury, Cherrytown, and Myrefield.

Woodbury, as its named suggested, was mostly associated with the collection of lumber and the management of forests. Cherrytown was the softer of the three villages, mostly associated with the collection of fruits and vegetables. Myrefield was by far the most "particular" of the three towns, as it was named after the Myre, and was typically associated with people of the other two factions, referring to the Samurai and Vikings. While Myrefield is typically regarded in a somewhat negative light because of its division and higher rate of crime, it's also responsible for contributing a sense of diversity and ethnicity into a fortress of mainly Knights. However, Woodbury and Myrefield are usually the two towns that are quarreling the most, and typically end up spawning a higher number of capable fighters, while Cherrytown was the more submissive town, its inhabitants fonder of peace and quiet rather than boisterous violence. Because of this, Cherrytown was regarded as the "bystander" town, referring to its idleness and neutrality when it came to disagreements between the outside towns. While Woodbury and Myrefield went at it, Cherrytown was usually standing in the middle, unsure of what position to take, and typically ended up falling victim to pressure and influence from outside forces.

The young girl outside the Hero Barracks typically found herself resenting her own origins and birthplace. Being from Cherrytown, the place that bore the least amount of Heroes out of all locations in the Azure Legion, the girl was always finding herself in doubt, her conscious filled with anxiety and the fear of failure. Many of the people she knew doubted her abilities, and many of her peers typically made fun of her for attempting the Hero trials as a Cherrytown girl.

"_Go back to picking cherries in the forest!"_

"_Aren't you supposed to be somewhere in a strawberry field or apple orchard?"_

"_I applaud you for making it this far, but this is your last step before going back to basic training!"_

"_A Cherrytown girl with a sword? I'm surprised its even made of metal!"_

"_Soft and squishy, just like everyone else from your little town."_

"_What's an outsider doing here? The Academies should be exclusive to the quadrants…!"_

"_An outside villager, eh? Woodbury? Myrefield? Wait—Cherrytown?! Hah! You won't last a week!"_

"_Enjoy it here while you still can!"_

This constant berating and teasing made the life of the young trainee very apprehensive and anxiety-packed. The only thing that kept the squire moving was the support of her very few friends that lived inside the walls, and her own motivation to get away from her home. The girl did not dislike Cherrytown, as it was where she grew up, and learned to be a proper woman. But it was also the place where what was left of her family resided. She originally grew up with her mother and father, who initially raised her happy and healthy. It wasn't until the girl was eight years old, when she received news about her father's demise in a skirmish with Elio Legion forces. He had suffered a fatal stab wound from behind as his team of soldiers encountered enemy Elios near an abandoned cathedral. His allies reported that he managed to kill at least 5 enemy soldiers all on his own before dying, not including his assailant who managed to thrust his own blade into the father's back. The father held on, and managed to bash his assailant's face in with his shield before succumbing to rapid blood loss, the only thing that was keeping him running, his adrenaline, finally running out at the point of passing out.

After this event, the girl was never the same, and neither was her mother. After the two lost the head of the family, the girl's mother was forced to take charge on her own. Unfortunately, her own job of tending to rose gardens and collecting oranges in an orchard wasn't enough to support both herself and her daughter. She could think of nothing else to do, and she couldn't stand to take another job, as she was already beginning to overwork herself. So, as a final resort, and as a side operation to bring in extra money, she began to sell her own body on the streets of the other villages. Cherrytown was not only known for its sweet fruit and soft-hearted inhabitants, but its beautiful women. Because Woodbury and Myrefield were rougher than Cherrytown, the people, and by default, the girls, were raised in a more sophisticated, dainty manner than the women in the other towns. The term "Cherrygirl" was adopted for girls who hailed from Cherrytown, and typically, Cherrygirls could be identified on the streets of other towns and within the walls of the Fortress based off their expressive mannerisms and quaint forms of speech.

The girl's mother tended to get the most amount of money from men in Myrefield, as they were by far the roughest and more robust males of the three towns. This began to take a toll on the girl's mother, and eventually, it transformed her for the worse. Sometimes she would grow fond of a man she found, and as a result she would bring him home with her for additional services, which were, of course, "free of charge." The mother was even daring enough to fancy other women, offering them her services for half the price, as "a thing between us girls." The girl, meanwhile, was forced to watch from the sidelines as her mother grew distant and dishonorable, bringing home both men and women whom she had never seen before, and having to endure the sounds of pleasure that would echo through the half-empty home, resonating irresistibly from her mother's room.

The girl was forced to begin to take care of herself all on her own and without the help of anyone else, as the girl wanted to do her best to keep what was happening at home a secret from those around her. As a result of keeping to herself, the girl also grew distant to her friends, and ended up as a more independent girl as a result. She aspired to be like her father, the good man she always knew she would love and miss, and the man that she believed was the only one for her mother. The girl decided that she would make her father proud by becoming a Hero, and when she finally reached the right age, she began her training to follow in the footsteps of her father. She grew resentful of her mother, and wished to get away from her as quickly as she humanely could. While she still loved her dear mother, and held onto the memories of how she used to be, the girl knew that the woman she knew as her mother was already long gone, and was bound to never return.

Donned in a pair of brown leather boots, light-khaki colored pants, a white tunic that was adorned with matching blue buckles and outlines, a basic belt with a silver buckle that tied together the tunic's long robe-like brigandines that reached down to the top of the girl's calves, light layers of chainmail that adorned her upper arms, and lightweight iron bracers that fortified her forearms, reaching from in front of her elbow down to her wrists. On her back, she had her father's scabbard, which was made of dark brown leather. Resting within the scabbard was the girl's most prized possession. An arming sword that her father had made for her for the purpose of self-defense. The arming sword was fitted perfectly for a girl of her size, the blade carefully crafted with stainless steel, the guard curved upward and adorned with engravings of rose vines. The handle itself was wrapped with leather that was dyed blue, and was designed with roses. In the hilt area of the sword, a singular blue gem was shimmering, representative of the girl's diamond-blue eyes. As a basic squire, she was not authorized to carry a sword. But the girl did not care, as technically, the sword was her own personal possession, and it wasn't clarified that she couldn't wield her own property while donning her squire outfit.

She stood outside the Hero Barracks, lost in thought, before she released a small gasp of realization. Her friend, she must be meeting the Alphas by now, right?! The girl blinked a couple times before looking around to see if anyone had their eyes on her. She quickly began to jog around the metal fence, looking for the outdoor courtyard. She ran all around the establishment and couldn't find the courtyard for the life of her. She decided to circle it all again a second time a little slower, trying to make out the courtyard. Even after the second time, she couldn't locate the right area.

"I thought the training courtyard was big and open! Where is it, no… come on!" She cried out, bringing her hands to her cheeks with panic. She desperately wanted to see the Alphas, as they were the figures of the Azure Legion that she admired the most. She especially admired the one she knew to be the proud warden responsible for winning Jacques' final Martial Arts Tournament, defeating the Warborn clans, and saving the Myre from total disaster. She had already met the great Warden once, but only briefly. The girl remembered the Warden's appearance perfectly, looking wondrously into her golden eyes, and being paralyzed by that dazzling smile.

"I want to meet her again… the last time I did, I barely knew what to say. But this time… it'll be different! I know what to say, I know what I want her to know, I know what I'll do and how I'll act! I won't make a fool of myself again, not like I did last time…" She said to herself, clutching both of her fists in front of her face. The girl's first and only encounter with her role model went terribly in her eyes. She was scared, flustered, intimidated, and shocked, but she was also filled with wonder, admiration, and dreaminess. Every time the girl thought about the encounter, she could remember the words that the Warden had told her to the very last detail. It was as if she could hear the Warden's voice within her own mind every time she thought about her.

"_Anything can happen when you're out there. But try not to think about the bad things. Whatever comes your way is something you can overcome if you play your cards right okay?"_

"_Train hard, learn a lot, and stay positive."_

"_Wounds will come, and you will feel more and more pain, but just remember that whatever doesn't kill you only makes you stronger. Let the pain harden you, and strengthen your heart and body, mind and soul, got it?"_

"_Fight for your cause with honor, and fight __**for honor.**__ When the sword of a Warden is drawn, it's for a purpose, and that purpose is what should drive you."_

The girl once again found herself lost in thought and daydreaming. She blinked a single time, leaning up against the fence with her head dug between two bars of the steel barrier. She heard a voice call out to her from behind, causing her to stagger backwards and spin around to face the voice in a panicked speed.

"Huh—what?!" She cried out, looking at the person who had called out to her. It was a villager who was lugging around a wheelbarrow full of potatoes. The man had a small smirk on his face as he set the wheelbarrow's handles down for a brief moment, raising a dirtied rag to his forehead to wipe some of his sweat away. He placed his hands on his hips as he repeated his question.

"I asked if you were alright over there. You were slumped up against that fence in complete silence, looking awfully dismal."

The girl looked over her shoulder at the Barracks, before hesitantly turning back to the villager with a nervous smile. "O-Oh! Heh—yes, I'm alright! I was… uh… I-I was just—" The girl released a shaky exhale, her hands suspended out in front of her as she attempted to explain herself. "Um… I was just tired! I was… running back from the bakery, and… I just had to try and take a breather!" She finally managed to blurt out.

The villager's head rose up a little, looking at the girl with a skeptical gaze. "But… the bakery isn't very far. In fact, it's… right over there." He said, pointing over to a building that was less than a jog away. The villager turned back to the girl with a blank expression.

"Uhm… r-right! I…" The girl paused, looking down to her chest. She placed a hand on her heart, and pretended to pant. "I just have a very low stamina!"

"Uh huh…" The villager responded, nodding his head slowly. He then peered at the girl, and noticed her garments. His eyes darted back to her face, one of his eyebrows perked up with interest. "And… if you just came back from the bakery, then… where's what you bought? Unless you were in a hurry for… nothing?"

The girl's heart seemed to stop as she found herself stumped once again. She looked down to her feet, her toes curled up with anxiety inside her boots. She gulped as she looked up to the villager, laughing awkwardly. "I… I lost it! Or—no, I dropped it! Yeah, that's it."

The villager crossed his arms, his smirk returning onto his face. "Dropped it. Why didn't you pick it up? What, did it roll all the way over here and you had to run after it?" He asked.

"N-No! That would be ridiculous!" She laughed, out of pure lies. She hated to lie, yet here she was. "A… a dog came after me and snatched it all up! It was a pack of dogs! Strays, very dirty and messy. Probably hungry, so… uh, yeah. I just ran over here trying to get away from them, and…" She paused once again, continuing her fake panting, although she purposely made it less intense to portray that she had caught her breath a bit. "And well, you know. That low stamina I mentioned before kicked in, and… here I am!" She chuckled, her neck beginning to grow hot from pressure.

The villager cleaned his face of sweat once again with his dirty rag, glancing at the Hero Barracks behind the girl with a small frown. He looked back down to the girl herself and huffed, stuffing the rag into the pockets of his overalls. "Well, whatever you say, squire. I suppose I should leave you alone to catch your breath, right…?"

The girl simply nodded as she stood up straight, bowing lightly to the villager. "Yes, I suppose. Thank you for checking up on me, though!" She said with a cheerful smile, her hand up in a little wave. The villager nodded his head, tipping his straw hat to the girl before crouching and lifting up his wheelbarrow and continuing on with his day. The girl turned back to the fence, and gripped onto the cold steel bars with her bare hands, her little fingers curling around the bars tightly.

She remembered how Lady Ryon placed her heavenly hand onto her own shoulder, and spoke words to her that she would never forget. It was by far the most important thing she said to her, and it was forever engraved into her mind.

"_You'll be a great Warden, trust me on that." _

With those words, the girl knew that she had what it took to become a Hero. She was going to do everything in her power to achieve the position of her dreams. She owed it to herself and to her father to become a Hero. She wanted to get away from the former shell of a person that was her mother, and break through the doubts of her peers, and prove to the Azure Legion that a Cherrygirl wasn't always just a pretty little flower girl, but was also capable of being a strong, capable, and reputable Hero.

The girl clutched her fists and brought her wrists below her chin, her teeth grit together with determination. "I've gotta find the courtyard, I've wasted so much time! But…" She looked up to the steel fence, frowning at its height. She stood at the miniscule height of 5'4", and there was no possible way she was going to be able to scale it without being seen. So she had to find another way.

Just then, a stroke of luck rang into her ears in the form of a horse neigh. She looked over her shoulder to see two horses lugging a massive wagon of hay in the streets, and it was heading in the direction of the fence's entrance gate. She felt her heart jump with excitement at this opportunity. The girl quickly began to tail behind the wagon, being careful not to look too conspicuous. She watched with eagerness as the gates were opened by the guards. The wagon began to roll in, the horses tugging the massive haybale along.

* * *

**About a minute later…**

The two guards looked at the horses and the delivery man who was driving the wagon. They exchanged a few words, before the wagon was cleared for entry. The wagon began to make its way towards the horse stables, where the trusty steeds of the Heroes were stored for safekeeping and care.

But right before the wagon stopped, a small, pale hand stuck out from underneath the hay and gripped onto the sides of the wagon. The hand pulled the rest of its body out as the squire girl popped her top half out and looked around, hay covering her clothing and stuck into her hair.

"I'm in! Now to find the courtyard!" She'd whisper to herself, before standing up and jumping out from the wagon. She landed with a light thud, and quickly rushed into a horse stable to get herself cleaned up. She opened the stable door and gagged as soon as she smelled that wonderful stench of horse droppings.

"Agh—oh god! Jesus, that's absolutely _acrid_, oh my god…" She squealed, pinching her nose with one of her hands as she cleaned herself off with her other hand. Once she was done, she petted the horse's neck with her freehand, and rushed out from the stable. She looked around and laid low, crouch-walking out from the stable building and dodging around the path of the hay wagon as she made her way over to a few storage shacks.

"Okay… now to find the courtyard." She'd say to herself as she began to sneak around. Thanks to her small feet and light step, she was able to go around the fortress fairly undetected. There was barely anyone around, as all the trainees were currently situated in the courtyard, and were scheduled to meet the Alphas any minute now. The girl dodged cleaning maids and the occasional scout guard, before she caught onto the path of the courtyard.

She crept around a corner and tip-toed her way to the side of the armory building. She knew that the inside of the building was massive and was filled with all sorts of combat-related equipment. At that very moment, she swore to herself that she'd make it in there one day, legally, and that she'd finally be able to use the equipment at any moment she wished to. After about a minute of sneaking along the armory's perimeter, she finally came upon her objective.

"The courtyard… I found it! Hell yes!"

The girl peered out from the corner of the armory building, and gazed at the large courtyard. She could see dull sparring weapons and training dummies, along with scattered items of weighted clothing and suits of lightweight armor. And finally, there they were. Standing in formation and in neat rows, the 60 Hero trainees stood donned in purple and blue colored robes and silver armor, along with secondary black and white colors. The trainees of the Barracks were free to choose the color of their own armor uniforms, which seemed like a distant wonder to the girl, who was forced to wear the white and light blue uniform of her Hero Academy.

Her eyes darted around rapidly, until she realized that… the Alphas weren't there. She could see that the 60 trainees were speaking to some of their instructors, but the team of nine famous Heroes weren't there just yet. The girl was constantly looking around, making sure that a wandering house worker or watch guard wasn't going to sneak up on her. She slowly made her way over to a handful of weapon racks and armor stands that effectively formed a sort of makeshift barrier that the girl could safely hide behind without being seen by anyone within the courtyard itself. She couldn't help but to gaze up at the massive array of weaponry that stood proudly in front of her. Almost all the weapons in the stands were too large for her to properly handle excluding the smaller-sized daggers and knives. She passed her little fingertips along the dusty metal plating of the armor suits, imagining how much the suit probably weighed when worn, and how much stronger she would have to be to be able to properly move around and fight inside of one in active combat.

The girl let her curious hand fall to her thigh as she looked down to the ground in a kneeling position, her butt resting on her legs as she sat there idly for a second, just now beginning to realize that she still had a long, long way to go before becoming a fully-fledged Hero. Despite being well aware that the route of the Hero was the path she wanted to pursue in her life, she also knew that it wasn't going to be easy. With a quiet sigh, the girl closed her eyes, her shoulders drooping as her body released bottled up tension.

"_Will I really grow up to become a great Warden, Lady Ryon? Did… did you really mean that…?"_ She thought to herself, her heart growing heavy with anxiety as it always tended to do. The girl's moment of doubt was luckily interrupted by the sound of heavy doors being unlocked and opened, accompanied by the faint sound of unrest among the 60 Hero trainees. The girl's eyes opened, her blue eyes sparkling, despite being behind the shadows of the courtyard's weapon and armor stands.

"That must be them…! Oh, yes!" She quietly cheered to herself as she began to slowly edge out from behind the large suit of Lawbringer armor she was currently kneeling behind. She peeked a bit of her head out from behind the armor stand, her laser blue eyes slowly widening as her gaze rested upon the Heroes of her dreams.

"There they are… they—oh my gosh…! Oh—"

The girl's eyes locked onto a friendly face she saw standing among the group of trainees. The friend that had told her about the Alpha meeting stood behind the front row of trainees in purple and white robes and silver armor, her fiery ginger hair fashioned into two long braids that were accompanied by cute side bangs that neatly cupped her face and covered her ears.

"Oh… Amybeth, you're such a lucky girl! Such a lucky, lucky girl…" The girl whispered to nobody, her little hands curling into fists below her chin as she watched the Alphas be greeted by a round of applause from both the trainees and the Barrack's teachers and instructors. The girl nearly began to clap herself, but managed to stop herself by clasping her hands onto her cheeks and squeezing her face. She knew every one of the Alphas by name, and she could tell each one of them apart.

The girl watched as the Alphas lined up in front of the trainees, all sporting their own styles of clothing and armor. She noticed that some of them weren't wearing their battle clothing, and were instead dressed in somewhat casual training clothing. The girl instantly began to hope for a sort of presentation or demonstration of Alpha-level martial art techniques. The instructors spoke to the trainees for a couple of brief minutes, taking the time to introduce the Alphas one by one.

The girl followed along, her eyes filled with wonder as her quiet voice announced the names of the Azure Legion's top Heroes all to herself.

"_Apollo Stone…! The Centurion with fists of steel and an iron hide!"_

The one named Apollo Stone bowed proudly as he received a round of applause from the trainees, lifting both of his hands up into the sky, his fists glimmering from the beautiful golden gauntlets that armored his hands. The Centurion laughed heartily as he bathed in the love of his fans and admirers, the man grinning as he slammed his steel fist into his palm of the same material. His piercing brown eyes shined brightly in the sun, his light brown hair perked up and somewhat unkempt atop his head. A sharp jaw and a strong nose made his face robust and attractive.

"_Katsue Sato… The Shinobi of the shadows, armed with breakneck speed!"_

The small, slim girl known as Katsue Sato put on a shy smile as she raised a dainty hand up to wave back to the applauding trainees. She put her hands together at her waist and bowed down to all of them, the trainees all quickly fumbling to do the same, in order to show their respect. She let out a little laugh, putting a hand to her mouth to hide her wide smile. Her rare purple eyes sparkled like amethyst stones, her black hair fashioned into a smooth ponytail that matched her long bangs, which ended naturally just above her eyes.

"_Elea Dormor! The Berserker with savage agility and brutal strength!" _

A woman donned in modified Viking armor stepped forward and let out a massive roar, before breaking out into a fit of cheerful laughter, the trainees clapping and laughing along as they watched the Berserker perform backflips and cartwheels. She twirled around and brought her hands to the ground in a handstand before beginning to pump out handstand pushups. The trainees clapped with admiration, large smiles on their faces. She sported wavy shoulder-length dark brown hair with a curly fringe that complemented her emerald green eyes.

"_Cyrus Isola! The Golden Warden with endless wit and dashing looks!"_

The Warden sported his signature golden suit of armor that was accompanied with bright blue robes that matched the man's bright blue eyes. His wavy light blonde hair shined brightly in the sun, a few thin strands of hair hanging down onto his forehead as he flashed his pearly whites to the trainees, waving proudly. The female trainees all fanned themselves and cheered wildly for the handsome Warden, while the men simply clapped with smug grins. Cyrus maintained his laid-back, relaxed posture, waving non-chalantly as he chuckled beamingly.

"_Cinder Alphus… General Cinderus's son and commander legionnaire!" _

A black-haired, silver-eyed man stepped forward and bowed to the trainees, who cheered him along. The man stood upright and smiled, waving to the trainees with a genuine gaze. He wore black pants that were tucked into black leather boots, his undershirt was gray, a brown jacket over it with its golden buttons undone. The Commander allowed himself to be applauded, despite the fact that he was a humble, modest man who didn't exactly enjoy praise, but didn't ever deny it either. He was a Warden, his longsword on his back, its black handle visible.

"_Cindra Alphus…! General Cinderus's daughter and tactical mastermind!"_

A woman stood next to Cinder with a bright smile, her wavy black hair running down her back and ending just above her breasts. She brought her sideswept hair away from her silver eyes as she stabbed her longsword into the ground between her feet, a matching black handle signaling her partnership with her brother. The trainees once again applauded loudly, the teachers adding in their own compliments to the girl, as she was known for working closely with her brother and father in making plans for the Alphas to execute. Plans that almost never failed.

"_Alban Saldivar! Tall and mighty, strong and charming!" _

The tall, burly Highlander received a wave of praise as he raised his hand up in a welcoming wave. His smile was wide and bright, his piercing dark blue eyes shimmered like sapphires. His blonde hair was styled upwards to match the clean shave of his beard that guarded his refined jaw, his side burns neatly faded into, courtesy of the Azure Legion's finest barber. He was dressed in casual wear made of mostly thick leather, his belt buckles decorated with gemstones that he personally owned, most of the clothing made from his own hand.

"_Airi Hakushi…! Princess of the Dawn Empire, guardian Nobushi of the people!"_

The gorgeous woman that was formerly the princess of the Samurai's Dawn Empire stepped forward, dressed in a scarlet and white colored robe and black slip-on shoes, similar to those used in traditional martial arts, with white socks worn underneath. What laid below the robe was a young, lean body that was capable of deploying powerful kicks and a wide arrange of martial arts. Skilled with the naginata staff and experienced with agile combat tactics, she was an elegant fighter with a beautiful appearance. Her gorgeous black hair was fashioned into a neat bun, short little buds of hair protruding from underneath the bun. Two braids led from the front of her head to the bun on the sides of her head, sideswept bangs cutely passing across her forehead and above her deep brown eyes, her face framed by tassels of hair that rested in front of her ears. With a smile fit for women of royalty, Airi giggled quietly to herself as she was cheered on by the trainees, her left hand's ring finger adorned with a sparkling diamond ring.

The girl held her breath as the final Alpha awaited her introduction. She looked at the instructors, who were speaking a few words that she couldn't hear from the distance she was stalking from. But the girl knew that the trainees were ecstatic, just like she was. Her gaze briefly switched to look at her ginger-headed friend, Amybeth, to see if she shared the same excitement she did. It was apparent; the girl had her hands clutched, her lips pursed with suppressed enthusiasm, her tippy toes up as she tried to get a better look at the Warden who everyone seemed to adore.

The girl took in a deep breath, her eyes widening as she clasped both of her hands over her mouth with giddiness. _"Emora… Ryon! The Warden with a heart of gold and nerves of steel!" _She squealed quietly to herself, her voice high, her cheeks red behind the armor and weapon stands.

The Warden known as Emora stepped forward modestly, dressed simply in dark brown pants, black ankle boots, and a buttoned up black jacket. She had a blue patterned bandana tied around her neck, her wrists adorned with bracelets, a diamond wedding ring on her left ring finger, exactly like Airi's. She was overwhelmed by a massive round of applause, the trainees unable to contain all their excitement, beginning to call out for the Warden, their hands in the air, their faces filled with happiness and surprise. The golden-eyed Warden laughed out of pure emotion, her ringed hand rising to the trainees in a cheerful wave. Her hair was styled as it always was, with long blonde bangs swept to the side, side bangs in front of her ears that flowed freely in the gentle breeze, her long ponytail running down her back. She was known for brave, courageous acts that were dangerous and frightening, yet the Hero faced the challenges with valor and passion. She was a fit, attractive girl with an emotional soul and a pure heart of gold, which was by far her most recognizable and admirable feature. She stood there modestly, her hands shuffling around with one another nervously.

The teachers and instructors were forced to step in to try and quiet down the trainees as Emora stood in the middle of the other eight Alphas, her fellow Heroes patting her on the back and comforting her. Being praised in that sort of manner was overwhelming, and as mentioned before, Emora was faint of heart.

"You did great. Are you alright?" Cinder asked the Warden.

Emora looked up to her Commander and ally, nodding to him with a happy smile and big eyes. "Y-Yeah... god, I... I love each and every single one of them." She whispered, looking down to her hands, which were still holding onto each other. Cinder nodded to Emora with a light chuckle, looking up to face the eager trainees.

"Yeah. I can't wait to see what they become." He said in a low voice.

Emora held her breath, bringing both of her hands to her heart. "Me too."

The girl, by this time, was on her back, her hand on her heart, panting with excitement. She had nearly passed out from holding her breath, as she was trying not to release a shriek of love and admiration for the team of Alphas. With teary eyes and a red face, she looked up to the sky, her small chest rising up and down with each of her light breaths.

"I want to speak to them… I want to speak to her again! Agh—curse this agonizing process of aging!" The girl groaned to herself, covering her face with her hands for a brief moment. She sat up after fussing about like a child for a bit, continuing to look on from behind the stands. The trainees had quieted down now, and the instructors were speaking. Because it was quieter now, the girl could more easily hear what the instructors were saying.

"_We're lucky enough to have the Alphas here to speak to you all about your futures, and to answer any questions that you all may have. We hope that this is an inspiring, motivational moment for you all, and that this will further push you to work hard on the path to becoming a true Hero. You are a lucky class of trainees, as the Alphas are usually very, very busy. So, as a thanks from all of us, let's give them all one last round of applause for taking time out of their day to come and visit us!" _

The girl giggled as she heard the courtyard blaze up with noise, laughter, cheering, hollering, whooping, whistling, and clapping. She clapped along quietly, her little hands close to her heart as she did so. "Oh, Amybeth… you're so damn lucky! But… thank you, thank you _so_ much for telling me about this!" The young squire said to herself, watching as her friend jumped up and down with her friends as they yelled out for Heroes like Cyrus and Apollo.

She fell silent as the instructors began to speak about what awaited the trainees in their next two years of training. All the trainees were young 16-year-old boys and girls who wanted nothing else but to become an active Hero, but even the instructors knew that many would not make the cut. If it were up to them, they would initiate all of the trainees into becoming Heroes, but in the Azure Legion, only the best was supposed to be chosen. Being a Hero was a privilege, and the title came with much reputation, praise, and reverence. If there were too many Heroes, the influence and impact of being a Hero would grow weaker, and that was not the goal of the Azure's Hero training program.

"_The road ahead is long and hard, grueling and difficult, painful and tiring, stressful and exhausting. But I do firmly believe, alongside many other teachers and instructors here at the Barracks, that you all have the potential to become loyal, powerful, and capable Heroes. Whether you have chosen the route of a Lawbringer, Peacekeeper, Conqueror, or Warden, or any other Hero type of the other Factions, you will all go through the same trials, tests, and hardships as one another, putting no one individual in front or behind another."_

"_The training will last for two years, and will end by the time each and every single one of you is at least eighteen years of age. There will be physical trials and written exams, along with academic assignments of varying difficulties. Of course, as you all know, martial arts training and strength training is part of the job, but remember that brawn without brain is practically useless! One cannot be strong without the other, and that is a known fact. You will go through history lessons, linguistic arts, geographic marking, outdoor traveling, fitness tests, and even cultural broadening. In order to be a proper Hero, you must understand as much as you can about the world around you. And that is what you will be learning to do here at a level even greater than all of your previous years of training combined." _

"_In order to help you all feel more comfortable in embarking on this rigorous undertaking, we'll allow any of you to ask the Alphas questions about absolutely anything you'd like to learn or know more about. We hope that by getting some insight on what lays ahead helps you all be better prepared and feel more confident in being able to take it all on in these next two years. You'll all receive seasonal breaks for the holidays and such so that you can go visit your families and all. Otherwise, your lives will be situated here. Now, you may all raise your hands and begin to ask your questions." _

The girl had many, many questions she wished she could ask, and it was killing her that she couldn't do so. She took a second to look around, as she was still on-guard about her surroundings. She calmed once she saw that no trace of company was around. She turned back to face the courtyard, where the first trainee raised his hand to ask a question. She listened carefully, her heart filled with excitement.

"_What major difficulties did you all had when on the road to becoming Heroes? What did you all have to deal with, and what are some things we can expect to have to battle against during our time here?" _The trainee asked.

The girl watched as the Alphas all exchanged expressions and looks, before silently deciding who would speak first amongst themselves. As she was hoping, the golden-eyed Emora stepped forward to answer the question.

"_Well…"_

The girl listened deeply, her heart filling up with determination as she listened to the Warden speak. More than ever, she wished to speak with her on her own.

* * *

_**I apologize for not updating this story in almost half a year, but... school and life as a whole has really bum-rushed me and I was unfortunately unable to get any solid writing time in, so for that, I want to say that I'm sorry.  
**_

_**I'll hopefully be able to update a bit more frequently. I hope anyone reading enjoyed this second chapter. A lot more is yet to come.**_


	3. Chapter 3 - Debriefing the Future

"_How did you go about managing your heavy workload while also being able to keep up with physical training and workouts?"_

"A lot… and a lot… of patience, determination, crying, and company and help from your peers. After working out, you gotta' hurry up and take a bath, then find your study buddies, and get your work done before 'lights out' is called." Katsue answered with a nervous giggle.

"_Are the exams difficult? And are the books big or small? Oh… and what languages will we be learning?"_

"The exams are stupidly difficult, yeah. I uh… I suppose they're easier if you study. So… that's recommended, for sure. The books are large, typically more than three hundred or so pages. And… you'll be learning Icelandic and Japanese, assuming you already know your Latin." Apollo replied, with a small cough. He didn't study much back in his schooling days.

"_Will we be allowed outside the barracks, or will we be supplied with everything we need to live in here already?"_

"You can go out at certain times of the day. But… honestly, after the first month or two, you won't have the time to go out. The grounds are already big enough, and… with how busy you'll be, exiting will be less frequent than you may think. After all, you'll have everything you'll need and more all in one single area." Cindra said firmly, her arms crossed.

"_What was the most painful thing you all went through during your training, like… did any of you get hurt, or… how did you deal with soreness and such."_

"Hah! One time we had to complete these mobility courses with all our equipment and armor, right? And this douchebag was behind me while climbing this… pseudo-wall and he somehow messed it up and ended up falling forward, onto me, pushing the both of us down about ten feet, or something. Not only did he dislocate my shoulder, but I couldn't breathe. It hurt, bad. And… for the soreness? Two things. Ice baths and sleep." Cyrus proudly answered, with a bright grin.

"_What's served for lunch here!?"_

"A lot of things! It can vary from beef stew to freakin' noodles! They got food from all three Faction lands, and the dining hall is open whenever, so you'll never go hungry!" Elea yelled out cheerfully.

"_Can we hang out with friends outside of the barracks, and if not, can we at least spend time in the dorms of other people?" _

"As Cindra said, you can go outside the barrack grounds at specified time intervals to visit your other friends, and yes, you're all free to visit one another's dorms. However, after a certain time, you're required to stay in the building of your sex." Cinder explained, his voice was amicable and smooth.

"_Will we be able to use real weaponry and armor during training drills? Oh, and what about reenactments, or mock battles? What can we expect in terms of combat training and strength building, too?"_

"You'll first be training with wooden tools that are lightweight and safe, as well as extensive martial arts training so that you're not defenseless without a weapon. Eventually, you will begin to use blunt versions of real weaponry. And weight training and sparring will occur often." Alban answered, simply.

"_Did any of you ever have the thought of quitting cross your minds? Like, did any of you just lay there in bed at night and just wish to go home, and give up on it all? And… if so, how did you stay focused and determined to keep pushing forward?"_

"That thought crossed my mind many, many times. The training was grueling, painful, and exhausting, the studies were stressful, rigorous, and overwhelming, but… I guess what kept me going was what laid ahead. I didn't miss my home, for personal reasons, so… I just did my best to stay hopeful." Emora said, her golden eyes sparkling.

"_What're physical trials? Will we have masters? Are we going to be practicing with all weaponry or just the weaponry that's related to our Hero type?" _

"Physical trials are things like the push-up, sit-up, and pull-up tests, along with timed obstacle courses and mile runs. You'll have instructors and teachers that will act as your 'masters', and… you'll mostly be training with weapons that are related to your Hero type, though you'll also be learning how to use other types of arms, such as bows, crossbows, knives, and shields." Airi explained, her voice clear and vibrant.

"_Do we get to wield weapons around the Barrack grounds?!"_

"Nope! No weaponry allowed anywhere besides training areas and armories!" Cyrus beamed with his hands on his hips.

"_Uh… how many outhouses are there, and where are they."_

"There's an 'outhouse' building that acts as a public privy near the horse stables. It's aired and frequently cleaned out, and there are two buildings, one for each sex. Each building has twenty stalls, so it should easily be enough for most of you to do your business. There are rolls of cheap cotton cloth there for cleaning as well. Be sure to discard them afterward, though. Please." Cindra replied, rolling her eyes, since the trainee who asked looked like they needed to go.

_"What about bathhouses? Do they have warm water!?"_

"The dormitories have a large indoor area that serves as a bathhouse. Multiple large tubs are run by workers that typically don't bother boiling up water for warm baths, so… if you want warm water for yourself and your peers, you might have to do it yourself." Cinder chuckled, shaking his head with a smile.

_"Is there any specific, uh… teacher, or instructor here that we should all be aware of? Like… a teacher that likes to assign a lot of bookwork, or… maybe just one that's uptight? Y-You know, it'd be a nice heads-up!"_

"Oh yeah, for sure. There's this one, man… her name still gives me shivers, but uh… Ms. Peachbottom is a real… uh, rigorous woman! Lots of homework from her, and she hates fun. Good luck if you have her for Latin." Apollo said with a heavy sigh, closing his eyes and rubbing his arms.

"_Will we be allowed to go home to get personal belongings we may have forgotten when moving into the dormitories? Oh! And… are we allowed to request roommate changes."_

"Yeah, as Mr. and Ms. Alphus have stated, you can exit the Barrack grounds at certain hours for whatever purpose you may have. And yes, if you truly do have a personal issue with a roommate, changes can be made." Alban spoke up with a powerful tone.

"_What's the most difficult physical trial we'll have to face?"_

"All of this is a trial! Focus on beatin' all of it!" Elea yelled with her fist in the air.

"_Did you guys cry a lot on some nights? You know… f-from the stress and exhaustion, of course! If you cried for other reasons, then… disregard the question…" _

"Mm… tears are part of life, so… yes, I personally cried a lot during my time here! For academic, physical, and… emotional reasons regarding matters of the heart. But… hey, don't focus on that, alright?" Airi nervously answered, her hand slowly drifting to her other hand's wrist to rub it.

"_Will we get to ride horses?!"_

"Yes, yes you will!" Katsue responded with a spirited laugh.

"_Can we date our fellow tra—" _

"H-Hey! Let's _not _worry about that here, okay?! There's a lot more to do, and that isn't typically high up on the priority list! Or… a-at least it shouldn't be!" Emora stammered, her eyes squeezed shut as her cheeks gradually reddened.

The group of 60 trainees and Emora's fellow Heroes all began to laugh. Even some of the teachers and instructors let out small chuckles as they watched. The girl behind the armor stands giggled into her hand as she listened to the questions, taking note of the important ones, and having quiet chortles at the sillier ones. It was relieving to the girl that the Alphas were such amiable people, as groups of elite warriors were typically very stern, demanding, and often overly hubristic.

The Warden laughed along nervously, her golden eyes glimmering with glee as she looked at the trainees that she was so hopeful for. But of course, the Heroes were there for more than just a simple session of questions and answers and a debrief of what was awaiting the trainees in the future.

The trainees needed to be evaluated before beginning their time at the Hero Barracks, for the teachers and instructors to get some sort of idea of what kind of teenage warriors they were dealing with, and how fast they should hit the ground running. If they were crummy, then things would start off easier. If they seemed capable, then lessons would get difficult quickly. This was also a chance to humble any overly confident trainees who would likely get caught off-guard early on and inevitably drop out.

The group of Alphas all glanced around the silent courtyard at the teachers and instructors at the sidelines. The trainees all watched as the adults all silently communicated through their expressions and gazes. They grew excited for whatever was about to happen. The Alphas all turned to one another, whispering amongst themselves.

"_So… who's gonna do this?" _

"_Not gonna lie, I want to. But… I feel like I might go overboard by accident."_

"_I'm not interested."_

"_Someone with good control and a genuine, honest way of evaluating the trainees."_

The Alphas went quiet for a couple of seconds as they all turned to look at a singular Hero amongst themselves.

"_Then it's obvious who should go."_

"_Yeah, fairly obvious."_

"_Indeed."_

"But—I thought we all agreed that—"

"_Hush! We've chosen you, so get out there and give them a taste of what their futures might look like someday."_

"Okay… f-fine."

The Alphas all turned back to the crowd of trainees, standing back in a straight line. The trainees stood at attention, watching them closely as the courtyard fell silent momentarily. The teachers and instructors all took a couple of steps back, making the courtyard seem more spacious. They all stepped off to the sidelines, the girl behind the armor stands shifting uncomfortably as she watched a few of the instructors come near her location.

The girl tucked her head back behind the armor stands and stack of weapons, holding her breath. She couldn't risk getting caught, but she knew something was about to happen. The girl very slowly shifted onto her knees, to make an escape easier if something were to occur. She around the corner of a Lawbringer suit's butt, to see three instructors all discussing quietly amongst themselves, looking inward at the courtyard, their backs turned to the girl. She couldn't help but let out a small sigh of relief.

With a small inhale to gather herself, the girl turned back to the courtyard, her bright diamond blue eyes watching closely through little gaps in the stands. She waited in anticipation, listening to her heartbeat inside her chest with anxiousness. _"What're they going to do…" _She wondered to herself.

The Alphas all turned to one singular Hero, the one they had chosen to "evaluate" the group of 60 trainees. The trainees all watched as Emora Ryon stepped forward, the rest of the Heroes backing away to the outer rim of the courtyard, joining the rest of the teachers, instructors, and staff at the Hero Barracks. Emora raised a hand to all of them, a small smile on her face. As she did so, the trainees all clapped for her, more politely than the more casual, celebratory manner they were doing so before.

"Heh… hello! My name is, as you already know, Emora Ryon, and I would just like to take a second to say that…" Emora paused for a brief moment, taking another gander at the group of trainees. With a slowly growing smile, she put her hands to her heart and let out a small laugh. "That all of you look absolutely wonderful. I have _so_ much hope for each and every single one of you, and I commend you all for working so hard to make it this far. From the bottom of my heart, you're all truly remarkable!"

In response to the praise, the trainees shot back with their own compliments, quips, and comments. Some shouted back positive retorts, while others simply laughed with rosy cheeks at the kind words. Emora politely bowed to the trainees, in which all 60 did the same in return. The Warden stood tall, beaming in the sun.

"Now, I would like to ask you all… one very simple question. Back in your prior years of training at your Quadrant or town's Hero Academies, how many of you actually partook in _true_ combat practice. As in… unprotected, full-contact sparring sessions?" The golden-eyed Hero asked, her hands on her hips as she spoke. As she looked around, very few of the trainees raised their hands. Of course, Emora knew that the Hero Academies did very little true sparring, as Academies were mostly focused on learning fundamentals, Hero roles, responsibilities, and purposes, and intermediate combat training.

As the trainees put their hands down, Emora nodded to herself slowly. She then put her hands out in front of herself, motioning at the trainees. She began to open her arms outwards around herself, a little smirk on her face as the trainees looked at her. She continued to repeat this motion, the trainees slowly catching on.

"Yes, yes, good. Make a neat little circle around me. Leave some space between yourselves and myself, of course." Emora spoke politely, watching as the trainees all evened out, forming a large circle within the spacious courtyard, surrounding the singular Warden. The blonde woman put her arms down, beginning to turn to the trainees as she continued to speak.

"So! You all may or may not have noticed what your teachers have asked you to wear today for your first day here at the Barracks. If any of you remember your first day at the Hero Academies, two years ago, normally… you would all be sporting your scholar uniforms. But that is clearly not the case here, right…?" Emora said loudly, projecting her amiable voice into the ears of the eager trainees. The young Heroes-in-training all exchanged glances, some looking down to their armor sets, before looking up and shaking their heads.

Emora nodded, raising a thumbs-up that was accompanied by a wink and perky-sounding: "Yep!" The Warden returned to her formal mannerisms as she crossed her arms, her blonde bangs gently waving sideways above her eyes, the cool wind providing a rush of relief from the warm sun above. "The reason that your wonderful instructors ordered you to this here courtyard wearing your armor is that your very first trial will be to experience what it's like to engage in full-contact combat, wearing your full suits of armor and all." She explained, with a pair of exuberant eyes.

The trainees all exchanged glances, the low rumbling of murmuring could be heard from the young future Heroes as Emora examined all their reactions. All their armor mirrored one another's, all including a pair of dark brown leather boots, dark tanned pants, steel, bronze, or silver shoulder pads, shin guards, knee pads, and forearm bracers, and finally… robes, brigandines, and tunics of the wearer's preferred colors, which could range through different shades of blue and purple.

After examining them all for a bit, Emora noticed that the trainees were all staring at her in anticipation once again. She cleared her throat, raising her voice so that she could be heard properly. "With this first little taste of combat, your instructors will evaluate you all for the very first time, checking to see what you all need to improve on as a group. Fighting with armor is more difficult than you all may think. Sure, standing in it like you are now is quite comfortable, but when you're in active combat, frantically looking around, running, dodging, jumping, out of breath, sweating, and filled with panic, it can get very stressful."

Emora walked along in small circles, her hands moving with her as she spoke. The jingles of her bracelets helped ease the tension for the trainees, for whatever reason. "So, in preparation for that, your instructors want to view how you perform as first-timers. Don't worry, this won't jeopardize your entry into the Hero Barracks, you're all already here, right?! So, there's nothing to truly stress over. Just do your best, as that's all we really want from you."

The girl behind the armor stands watched carefully, her ears at full attention. She slowly brought a hand to her lips as her finger edged towards her teeth as she opened her mouth a bit to unconsciously nibble on her fingernail. She stopped as her mind jumpstarted, the girl looking away as she curled the hand she had raised into a fist. _"A demonstration… it's a real demonstration! But… wait…"_

She turned back to the courtyard, the trainees all standing in their circle, looking around and nodding. The girl narrowed her eyes, gazing at Emora, who stood in the center of it all. _"They're… n-no way. They wouldn't do that, would they?"_

The girl then watched as a pale, soft hand was raised in the circle of trainees. She squinted to try and get a better look, and let out a quiet gasp as she recognized the voice that rang from the hand. It was her friend, Amybeth, who was the one who had told her of this fateful gathering with the Alphas. _"A-Amy…?"_

Emora turned to look at the ginger-haired girl known as Amybeth. She looked up to her hand, and let out a small giggle as she turned her full body around to face the young teenager. The Warden nodded her head, signaling for Amybeth to put her hand down. "Yes? What's your question?" Emora asked with a warm gaze.

Amybeth put her hands together in front of herself respectfully, lightly dipping her head down to the Warden before she began to speak. "Excuse me for interrupting you, but… I believe I speak for all of us when I say that we're quite confused. Are we going to be choosing partners and sparring with one _another, _or… is something else going to occur?" She asked, clearing her throat shortly after finishing her question.

Emora tilted her head to the side with a confused smile. She turned to look at the rest of the trainees, who all had expressions akin to Amybeth's. The Warden let her arms fall to her sides, scoffing desperately. "Wh-What? You're all meaning to tell me that it _isn't_ obvious who you're all fighting?" She asked, with a surprised grin.

The trainees all exchanged glances, before simply shaking their heads at the blonde Warden.

The girl pouted curiously as she gently moved a bit of her hair out of her eyes, focusing in on Emora.

The golden-eyed Knight closed her eyes, shaking her head as she let out a small sigh. She brought a hand to her eyes as she raised the other, Airi rushing forward through the trainees, scrambling through the trainees with a flurry of Excuse Me's and Sorry's. The Nobushi walked up and waited, Emora putting her arms down and resting them in Airi's hands. The trainees watched as the other girl took Emora's bracelets, wedding ring, and jacket.

Emora stood wearing her black boots, dark brown pants, her blue neckerchief, and a gray "sleeveless shirt," or tank top, made of cotton. She looked down at Airi with a small smile, whispering a quick remark.

"Thanks, Airi." She'd say, with a soft look.

The Nobushi nodded as she slid the bracelets onto her own arm, and tucked the Warden's ring into a little cushioned box she had with her. Airi looked up and placed a light peck on Emora's cheek as she gave the Knight a smile. "Be gentle with them." She'd whisper back, before fluttering away through the trainees and back to the Alphas on the courtyard's outer rim.

The Warden then turned to the trainees, who were all slowly beginning to catch on. Some of them had wide eyes, some had hot necks, others had parted lips, while some others simply had accelerated heartbeats. Emora grinned at the trainees as she cracked her neck and knuckles, on top of performing a couple brief stretches for her arms and legs.

After she was done, she rose to her full height, placing her hands on her hips. She let out a cheerful huff as she gave the trainees a gleeful stare.

"If you haven't figured it out just yet, then allow me to simply announce it!" Emora laughed, raising one of her hands to rub her nape.

"**Your opponent for today… will be yours truly!"**

* * *

**I'm actually quite glad I was able to update within two months. That's a new record for me, I think. Anyways, stay tuned for more. I'm really tryin' to be consistent here… oops.**


	4. Chapter 4 - Breaking in the Trainees

The girl let out a gasp as she heard Emora announce the sparring match, her eyes widening as her heart skipped a few more beats than it was normally used to skipping. She let her butt fall onto her legs as she sat on her knees, both of her hands covering her mouth as she continued to watch the courtyard.

The teachers and instructors chuckled to themselves on the sidelines as they observed the reactions of the trainees. They exchanged little quips, comments, and whispers as they pointed and chuckled quietly, trying not to make their amusement obvious. The Alphas all stood bunched together among some of the instructors, all exchanging smug glances as they observed the courtyard.

"You guys think she's got this?" Cyrus asked around to his fellow Heroes, looking to them with his hands on his hips. The other Alphas looked over to him with expressions akin to one another's.

Cinder shrugged, tilting his head to the side a bit as he eyed the arena with a wary expression, eyeing Emora from the sidelines. He remembered back when Emora was first starting off as an outdoor patroller, going off on her missions after two years of essentially being an 'intern' Hero. He smiled to himself, knowing she was still fairly new and had much to learn, but had already been through so much, and had gained so much experience, prestige, and ranking from her achievements. The Commander nodded, his wariness converting into a look of pride. "Yeah, for sure. She's been training hard and diligently, so… I trust she can handle this."

Apollo scoffed, looking at the arena with his arms firmly crossed across his chest. The Centurion was Emora's 'favorite sparring partner,' and knew well of her progress. "Heh, I think she'll do _just_ fine. I mean, she still can't match up to someone like _me,_ but… hey, against students? For sure!" He exclaimed, what he had said being far from his truth.

The other Heroes just let out small huffs and eye rolls, focusing back on what was occurring on the arena.

The trainees all began to take a few careful steps back, their arms out towards one another, as if saying "just stay far away", for a lack of a better gesture. They all had different expressions, such as expressions of disbelief, excitement, fear, worry, or pensiveness. Some of the more confident trainees faced the front, looking at Emora with a careful gaze.

The Warden let her hands fall to her sides as she analyzed the circle of trainees. She knew there were 60 of them and the fact that their levels of combat experience could vary, depending on dedication to martial arts training, along with their styles of fighting, which varied due to each individual Hero type. With a light smile, she curled her hands into fists, and got into a light stance, her left arm further out then her right.

"Go on, then! Any of you can come forward whenever you feel comfortable! Don't bother going one by one, either. Fight as a team, as a unit, as one!" She shouted, continuing to crane her gaze about in order to stay aware of her surroundings.

The girl behind the armor stands sat up, still on her knees, rising up to try and get a better look. She spotted her friend, Amybeth, watching from a safe distance, as she was not in the front lines of the circle. The front few trainees mostly consisted of strong, tall, burly teenage men who sported stern glares, all of them willing to show their skills off in front of their fellow peers. The girl bit down on her lower lip with worry, wishing she was among the trainees.

"_Th-This isn't fair… I—I want to be out there with Amybeth and the others! I spend so much time practicing and training, and yet…" _The girl stopped herself, looking down to her little hands in self-pity. She couldn't blame herself for her age, but the girl couldn't help but feel helpless with her situation. She couldn't stand the thought of waiting two whole years at the Hero Academies before having the _chance_ of making it to the Hero Barracks. This was the first time the Hero Barracks was receiving this kind of service, with the Azure Legion at its peak of popularity, and the brand-new team of Alpha fighters attending to help.

The girl wasn't completely sure if this was going to be a one-time thing, as she figured that the Alphas wouldn't make their visits common, as they were typically busy with their jobs, and if they were to appear every two years for every new class of trainees at the barracks, the experience of meeting the Alphas would get worn out. The girl knew this was a special opportunity, and the fact that she wasn't able to experience it directly, and only from the sidelines with a bad view, discouraged her.

She clutched her fists, her teeth gritting with tension as she looked out onto the courtyard, the trainees all preparing themselves for what was to come. _"I guess one good thing is coming out of all of this. I get to see how she fights! Ugh—I wish I had my notebook… I could learn so much from her!" _She thought to herself as she gazed at Emora from afar. The girl, ever since meeting Emora for a brief moment about half a year ago, she had begun to train even more diligently than she already was. Her friend, Amybeth, was her personal training partner and close friend who also hailed from Cherrytown, which served as a bonding point for the two girls. Both girls received training from Amybeth's father, who was a Warden. The two girls were skilled fighters, far ahead of many other girls in their class, which only pushed the two to want to learn more and more.

This didn't help the tension that the girl was feeling in her body.

The frontline of trainees stood with their fists clenched and varying battle stances, their faces were as still as rocks, their stern expressions eyeing their dirty blonde opponent closely, trying to put together a plan of attack. Emora stood in the middle, her golden eyes darting between the different trainees. Some were taller than her, some shorter. Most of the leading trainees were teenage boys who were eager to show off, so in turn, Emora figured she'd pull her punches less for each of them.

"I'm ready when you all are." Emora said simply, standing patiently in her stance. She looked calm and collected, her loose bangs billowing softly in the passing breeze, her expression reflecting back a light smile.

The front few trainees all exchanged a few glances, before nodding their heads at one another. They all tensed their bodies and took slight breaths as they eyed one another, circling the Warden slowly. All it took was for the first, most confident boy to step up, and the match would go from there. The Warden waited patiently, before finally, she locked eyes with a single trainee.

He had a strong, confident expression, his figure was large and fit, and he stood taller and larger than Emora, even at his young age. Fitted with bright blue robes and shining silver armor, he briefly looked over his shoulder at a few other trainees, before looking back to Emora, making eye contact, and gritting his teeth.

The Warden let out a small exhale as she watched the very first brave trainee skip forward at a decent speed and aggression level, his fist reeled back to strike her. But before he could even throw his attack forward, Emora shot her left fist into his side, causing him to gasp out with both surprise and pain. She let out a small breath as she sent her right leg upwards, striking the boy right in his armpit, rendering his arm useless.

Emora took a second to reel her fist back, observing the boy's pained expression as he weakly staggered to the side. She shook her head in a taunting way before shooting her fist upwards, connecting with the boy's chin, performing a clean uppercut that sent him onto his back, half KO'd.

"That's one down—oh!" Emora shouted as a second trainee came forth. At this point, she knew that things would be nonstop from here, and therefore shut herself up for the time being. She changed stances as she took a step back, avoiding a hook punch, before leaning forward and putting her weight into a right cross, her fist colliding with the second trainee's chest, and sending him launching back, breathless and incapacitated. The Warden heard shuffling behind her, and quickly turned over, instinctively firing her leg out in a locked out side kick, her foot slamming itself into the stomach of a third trainee.

"Agh—" The trainee cried out, hurtling backwards into other trainees, who stepped out of the way and watched as he collapsed onto his back, coughing up saliva.

A small smile came over Airi's face. _"Mm._ I taught her that one." She'd say, nudging Alban, who stood next to her. The Highlander smirked to himself as he nodded in response, the Nobushi feeling a rush of pride in her heart.

Emora looked away from the scene, only to see a fourth trainee come her way. She ducked underneath his straight punch, before returning with her own outwards right cross, her knuckles crashing into his nose as he fell back, his hands covering his face.

Emora stepped back, adjusting her battle stance as she looked at the four down trainees, the other 56 trainees still standing in their nervous stances. The Warden put her hand out, wiggling a finger. "Come on! There's no point in being shy!"

It was then that Emora could hear someone shift behind her. She looked over her shoulder and saw a trainee who was taller than her getting ready to grab her from behind. She spun about and led with her elbow, sending it directly into the boy's liver, bringing out a yell of pain from him. She quickly switched targets as another trainee came up with a straight punch aimed at her head. Emora let out a small grunt as she ducked under the punch, raised her leg, and shot it upwards into the other boy's chin, making his head shoot back. She watched as the two boys collapsed, before turning to a new opponent. She was surprised at his speed, and swiftly dodged two of his blows before jumping up into the air, and sending her right leg into the side of his head.

With a light grunt, she landed back on the ground as the seventh trainee fell with a thud. She quickly turned over, and leaned backwards, feeling the wind of a hook punch that a trainee unfortunately missed. She swung her left leg out in a roundhouse, the trainee flying to the side, and hitting the ground on their side. She quickly spun back around, pumping her fists. "Come on, there's whole lot more of ya', bring it!"

Two trainees rushed forward, a boy and a girl. Emora was glad to finally see a lady step forward to fight. She skipped towards them, watching as the boy rushed forward and attempted to throw a powerful punch using the momentum of his sprint. Emora merely dashed to the side, and sent her heel into the back of the boy's knee as he missed his punch, instantly sending him face first into the ground. She looked up to the girl, before looking over her shoulder to see yet another opponent. "Now you guys are pickin' it up, good!" She shouted, dashing forward.

She leaned low and rammed the tenth trainee, the girl, into the ground with an elbow to the ribcage, grinning as the poor brunette groveled on the ground, holding her side. She turned to the other trainee, dodging a punch, and retorting with a left hook to the temple. The boy staggered to the side, before losing his balance and collapsing, his vision disoriented. Emora spun around, to scan for incoming opponents. She set her eyes on her next attackers, putting her hands out in front of her. A fist fell into her palm as she blocked, before suddenly, before she could react, a fist found itself in her back.

With a sudden cry, she fell forward, and hit the ground, two trainees standing above her. Fell onto her side, and used her arms to lift her body upwards, her left leg up in the air to sweep at the shins of the two trainees. She used her momentum to send them both off their feet, before standing back up, having them fell onto their tailbones. She lightly brushed herself off, grinning. "See? They almost had me there! I'm not _that_ tough, come on. Have some confidence!" She yelled out, trying to encourage the group.

She raised her hands up, as if surrendering. "Watch, I'll try not to use my hands. Just my feet!" She suggested, crossing her arms underneath her bust as a trainee rushed forward.

Alban shook his head with a grin, his hands at his sides as he watched his friend in the training arena, taking on the trainees all on her own. "Using her legs only, that's quite the handicap. I hope all the training she's done with you has helped her flexibility and prowess with her balance." He'd say, craning his neck over to look at Airi. The Nobushi looked up to Alban, a small, somewhat snarky smile on her face as she gave him a nod. "Trust me, she's a quick learner, and her earnest personality made the process of making her a gorgeous dancer beautifully smooth and productive. After all, we've already seen some marvelous kicks." She said as she looked back to the arena, lightly biting onto her lower lip as she watched.

A trainee approached the Warden, Emora letting out a light grunt as she shot her right leg into his gut, instantly crippling him, watching as he slowly fell onto his back. She kept her leg arched in the air as another trainee came forth. She briefly placed her right leg down on the ground for balance, before spinning about, and sending that same leg's heel into the trainee's side, performing a spinning hook kick. That trainee flew to the side and rolled to a stop, holding his aching body.

Airi giggled, looking to Alban briefly. "See?"

The Highlander closed his eyes for a second, reopening them as he peered down to the Nobushi with a small smile. "Yeah. You sure know your wife."

The Nobushi looked away, putting a hand on her heart as she watched. Her cheeks flushed with red as her body's warmth rose, her heart beating a bit faster as she nodded to herself. "I know I do…" She whispered, half to herself, half aloud.

"This is free handicap, come on!" She urged, turning to a brand-new attacker, her arms still crossed. The girl trainee shot a fist out, missing her punch, and watching as Emora jumped up and sent her kneecap right into her chin. The girl's head shot back, her spine going with it as she collapsed onto her back, her world going black. Emora landed with a brief moment to rest before she was forced to spin about, sending her left leg outwards in a side kick, sending yet another trainee flying backwards.

"Seventeen…" Emora murmured, turning to another girl, who led with a kick. The Warden raised her leg, and blocked the kick with her shin, before snapping her leg to the side, the trainee's leg being knocked aside. Emora shot her foot into the girl's stomach, sending her launching backwards. The Warden turned yet again, hopping backwards to dodge a push-kick, and sending her foot into the lower spine of her attacker, watching as they flew forward and hit the ground harshly on their stomach.

Emora quickly looked forward, and saw a trainee rushing forward directly, as if preparing to tackle. She knew she had an easy range advantage, so she took the opportunity to spin about swiftly, her ponytail flailing in the wind like a flag as she sent her leg left into the trainee's abdomen in another spinning hook. She placed both feet on the ground, her arms still calmly crossed. "We've hit twenty!"

She readjusted and looked to her right, rolling her eyes as she easily fired her leg upwards in a locked out side-kick, her heel crashing into the trainee's forehead, sending them directly onto their backs. But then, she felt as someone grabbed her from behind, sliding their arms underneath her armpits, locking her shoulders as they placed their hands behind her neck in a full nelson hold, trying to hold her still for a second incoming trainee to come attack.

The girl's eyes widened, seeing no possible way the Warden could escape the attack she was facing. Her bright, diamond blue eyes sparkled as she leaned forward a bit, threatening to knock over the armor stand she was hiding behind. She let out a small gasp as she leaned back, quickly scrambling her head between a crack that was between the armor's leg and some large great swords. _"Oh gosh… wh-what's she going to do?!" _She thought to herself, in panic.

Emora panicked, unable to use her arms properly to try and escape the hold. She leaned forward, and overpowered the trainee behind her by snapping her head backwards in a reverse head-butt, the back of her head slamming into the trainee's nose. She pushed forward, leaning sideways, and launching her leg behind her in a back-kick, sending one of her attackers flying back. She turned to the second, who tried to abort the plan by sliding to a stop. Their boots slid into the dusty courtyard floor, before Emora's foot rammed into their chest, knocking the wind clean out of their lungs, and sending them harshly onto their back.

"Oou… that was a dirty move by those two, gosh! I think I'll take back what I said about the no-arms handicap, you guys are getting smarter!" She complimented, watching as two more trainees rushed at her from opposite directions.

The girl found relief as she allowed herself to sit back down on her legs, still on her knees, her pants and white robes dirtying as she continued to… stalk, the battle.

Emora inhaled sharply, drawing in some air as she prepared herself, her heart rate steadily increasing. She waited for the two trainees at hand to get close, before hopping backwards, watching as one of the trainees accidentally kicked her fellow peer in the side. Emora slid back, laughing lightly at the mistake as the two trainees both turned to her, the one who got kicked rubbing her side in pain.

"Come on, you're not done with me _already,_ are you?" The Warden teased, smiling cheerfully as she watched one of the trainees rush towards her. The trainee was a somewhat short, small girl who didn't have enough reach to properly strike Emora before getting hit herself. And that's exactly what happened. She fell onto her back, her cheek reddened as Emora shot a clean right cross into her face. The second trainee came shortly after, leading with a powerful right hook. Emora slid beneath the attack, smashing her elbow into the trainees' liver, immediately rendering them incapacitated. The Warden stood upright, spinning about on her heel as two more trainees rushed towards her.

With a grunt, Emora fired her right leg out into one of the trainees, sending them up into the air, before they collapsed back onto the ground, coughing up saliva. The blonde quickly readjusted, briefly placing both of her feet on the ground, before cracking her left leg into the second trainee's stomach in the form of a brutal spinning arc kick. As she recovered, a daring trainee dashed forward, attempting to lead with yet another right hook. Most of these fighters were right-handed, and were therefore used to leading with right-handed attacks. Emora read through all this, easily being able to counter any approach from the right, and only briefly hesitating when countering from the left.

"_Hya—not so fast!" _She'd grunt, thrusting her left hand out into her opponent's chest, knocking the air straight out of them. She wound up her left leg shortly after, using the time she had bought herself with the guard-break to launch the trainee backwards with a fully fledged side kick, which hit the trainee devastatingly hard.

"_Aaaugh!" _The trainee cried out as they crashed into three others, knocking them onto the ground. The three stood up, dusting themselves off as they stared at Emora with wide eyes and startled fighting stances. Emora raised a hand up to them, before turning her palm to herself, and signaling for the three to come right at her. The three exchanged glances, before all rushing forward, the centermost fighter leading the trio. They lead with a right hook, which Emora easily blocked and parried with her forearm. She shot her palm out and upwards, the bottom of her palm slamming into the fighter's jaw and sending his head rocking back, along with the rest of his body, down onto the ground. Emora looked to her left, her eyes narrowing as she countered her fifteen thousandth right hook, AGAIN, before deciding to punish with a heavy sidekick, the trainee gutting out with saliva as they slid back onto the ground, incapacitated.

Emora spun over, realizing that the two remaining trainees were attempting to come in front either sides of her. Unfortunately, their teamwork was off, and Emora was able to counter by picking them each off at separate time intervals due to their poor coordination. She turned over to her right, watching as the trainee threw a somewhat unique attack, attempting to strike the back of Emora's head with a right-handed chop. The Warden grinned to herself as she blocked with the outer face of her forearm, harshly countering the chop with the blade of her forearm, which hurt her attacker from recoil. She then swung her leg up, sending the trainee flying forward and tumbling into the ground with a swift roundhouse kick.

The Warden slammed her fist into her own palm, looking around with her brightly colored golden eyes. "That's thirty! We're halfway through, and I've only been hit once! I'm gonna need you guys to come in a lot quicker, and with more unique movements. Trust me, you'd all fare fantastically in street fights, but in _real_ battles against _real_ opponents, you've gotta be sharper!" Emora lectured, getting herself back into position. Her eyes snapped to glance over her shoulder as a trainee rushed up behind her, quickly grabbing onto her left arm. She beamed with an eager grin, looking up to Emora with a proud look.

"I've got you!"She celebrated as she tried to yank Emora's arm back with everything she had. The Warden looked down to the trainee with a sly smirk, raising her arm and resisting the pull. "Yeah, you caught me! Too bad you didn't punish me properly!" Emora said, turning her arm over and bending it downwards, sliding her arm beneath the trainee's armpit before proceeding to hook it upwards, performing a painful joint lock. The trainee's shoulder bent at an awkward angle as Emora lifted the girl upwards, before releasing her down into the ground with a slam. The trainee hit the ground and immediately went to grasping her injured arm, groveling over the pain. The Warden was about to apologize for the maneuver, figuring it was a bit too advanced to use against such young fighters, but was stopped by shuffling footsteps to her right.

Emora spun over, moving her right arm to block a roundhouse kick from her left side, her eyes simultaneously looking to her right at a second attacker. She knocked her first opponent's leg away to deter the kick, before quickly turning to the second attacker to slam down an attempt at an uppercut. The Warden used her right hand to grip on tightly to the hand the second attacker used to try and uppercut, and shot her left leg out into the first attacker, who was still recovering from his leg being knocked away. He flew backwards with a loud cry, saliva flailing from his mouth as Emora's soles crashed into his stomach. The Warden then focused back on the second attacker, who was throwing a left hook to try and break his other hand free. Emora swiftly weaved her head out of the way, before pushing the trainee back, releasing his arm, but firing her heel into their ribcage shortly after. The trainee, unable to block from being shoved, flew to the side and slammed into the ground, slowly skidding to a stop.

The Warden had little time to rest as she spun right back around, letting out a light huff as she ducked clean under a roundhouse kick that was aimed to her temple. She let her leg fold forward, using her arm to support herself as she fell low to the ground, firing her left leg out in a brutal leg sweep that struck her attacker clean off their feet, crashing down to the ground and hitting the back of his head against the dusted ground, the impact of the floor on his back knocking the air out of his chest. Emora twirled around, recovering from her leg sweep and backstepping. She let out a small exhale, inhaling sharply shortly after. "That's more like it! I think I feel myself getting winded!" She'd say with a confident, bright smile.

Katsue put her hands together at her chest, squeezing them as she watched the arena from afar, a hopeful, excited smile on her face. "She's doing great! Oh, but imagine how much fun it must be to do that… if we ever do this again, I'd like to try!" She commented with an eager tone. Cindra looked over to Katsue, the Shinobi looking back up to the taller woman. The Commander brought a hand to her chin, rubbing it lightly. "Hm… I'm not quite sure if we _are_ going to do this again. If we were to come every new class, it'd get dull very quickly, no?" She brought up, aloud to the other Heroes.

They merely nodded in response, not really bothering to say something back. A couple seconds passed. The arena seemed quiet for a brief moment. Cinder answered eventually, his voice pretentious. "I think it would, yes. I'd rather keep up the old tradition of simply bringing in Hero trainers to speak. After all, we're only here because it's the first year of our founding." He explained, not taking his eyes off the arena.

Katsue slowly nodded as she looked down to her feet briefly, peering at the small brown boots she had on. The Shinobi looked back up, smiling lightly to herself as she watched a couple instructors and teachers begin to assist the trainees that were already downed, knocked out, incapacitated, or otherwise rendered unable to continue fighting out of the arena's area, in order to help them recover, and keep them safely out of the way.

The remaining trainees took a minute or two to look around, all of them looking at one another as they took a few steps back from the Warden. The blonde was constantly looking around, her bright locks whipping about with her head's rapid movement. She paused for a bit, standing upright as she set her eyes on trainees in front of her. "Let's go!" She cheered, watching as trainees charged towards her, poised to attack. One charged with a right hook, which she knocked aside with her left hand, and punished with a harsh right cross to the jaw, which ended in an instant knockdown. As she threw this right cross, she saw a foreign leg flying towards her in her peripheral vision, which caused her to duck immediately after throwing the cross punch, readjusting as she leaned back, charging her left leg, before crashing her foot into the second opponent, sending them launching backwards. Emora inhaled as she spun around, her eyes darting around frantically as she looked for her next opponent. Her heart sort of stopped once she saw him.

"Jesus, you're big!" She'd exclaim to the trainee before her, who stood 6'5, towering over the smaller blonde, who only stood at 5'9. The Warden watched as he launched a massive right hook, his fist curdling towards her as her eyes widened. She let out a yelp as she weaved sideways and under, dodging the punch, her eyes still wide as she felt the wind of his punch hit her face. The world moved in slow motion as she thought about whether or not she should just… take this guy out quickly, or see what he could do. Realistically, getting hit even once would deal far too damage to the smaller, more delicate Warden. So, she chose the first option. The world sped back up again as she aimed for the buff trainee's liver, letting out a grunt as she threw out a powerful right straight punch, throwing her first blow that she decided not to hold back on. Her fist dug into his body, her knuckles sending a shockwave through the trainee's body that caused his eyes to widen harshly, his mouth opening up wide as he yelled out savagely, saliva launching outwards from his mouth and splashing out onto the dirt ground.

"_Woaah!" _The trainees all exclaimed at the same time, watching as the big-bodied trainee was instantly incapacitated by the blow the Warden had thrown. They all watched as hunched over, holding his gut, leaning into Emora. The Warden looked up, panicked. She tried to stagger back, but the punch she had thrown was too low to properly knock the trainee back, so instead, it folded his body, and inclined him to collapse_ forward_ onto her. Emora tried to hold the trainee up, to soften his fall, but instead, she found herself unable to properly support all the weight as the trainee fell. She let out a small cry as she fell along with the trainee, his body collapsing on top of hers as she hit the ground with a grunt.

Airi gasped from the sidelines. Katsue did too. Elea and Apollo let out small chuckles, while everyone else simply watched closely with silent, neutral expressions. The girl did the same as the two Samurai, gasping as she watched Emora become invisible. She no longer had a proper view of her as she fell to the ground, the trainees all standing around her, creating a wall that her clear, vibrant blue eyes couldn't see through. _"I-Is that it?! Maybe he tackled her, and she lost! G-Get up, Emora!" _She frantically thought to herself, internally yelling her lungs out.

"_AHH—ngh… get offa' me!" _She cried out as she grasped the trainee's massive body, and began to move it to her side. As the Warden worked to get the body off herself, other trainees all exchanged confused glances, unsure if… they should attack or not. Two trainees, looked at one another, nodding their heads at the same time.

"She wanted us to be quicker, start being smarter with our attacks, right?" The first trainee asked his fellow fighter. The other trainee nodded his head, clutching a fist. "Yeah, she did. If that's the case, then let's take advantage!" He yelled out, looking around and pumping his arm. "Come on, let's get 'er!" He'd say, other trainees cheering along and getting into excited fighting positions.

Emora hurriedly moved herself out from beneath the heavy trainee's body, looking up to see a horde of eager trainees rushing at her. This wasn't good, she was off-guard, panicked, and uncoordinated. But… for some strange reason, she felt kind of proud. These teenagers were taking this test seriously! Their objective was to take down Emora, and that's what they wanted to do, and it seemed like they were ready to take advantage of any situation to get it done. That's what the Warden wanted. To teach them that in battle, there are no rules. You do what you've gotta do to _win._

The blonde staggered back, gritting her teeth with effort as her feet scrambled everywhere, trying to find their rhythm again, the Warden's footwork off kilter. She grunted as she raised her right forearm to block a left hook, which was a move she wasn't used to blocking much from these trainees. She let out a yell of effort as she launched her left fist into the trainee's cheek, sending them flying back. She turned around, a trainee jumping at her from behind. They attempted to throw a kick at her, but before they could, Emora spun around and used that momentum to slam her elbow into their gut, launching them backwards. Suddenly, she felt as a downed trainee grasped onto her ankle, trying to take advantage of the slightly heightened heel of the boots the Warden had on. This was also new, no one had tried to grasp onto her after they were downed. Emora nearly tripped as she stumbled back, shaking her ankle loose and slamming her boot down on the trainee's hand, before looking up to her attacker.

"AHH—" She yelled out as she was barely able to dodge her way out of a roundhouse kick, which flew clean overhead as she spun about, bending her lower body downwards in order to dodge the enemy kick itself, and simultaneously swinging her right leg up in a massive high arc, supporting herself with her left leg. Emora dodged the kick while twirling down low, her heel slamming into the back of the trainee's head as she performed a brutally executed spinning hook kick, staggering back from the effort it took to launch her leg so far up into the air.

The Alphas all let out cheers, clapping their hands, along with some of the instructors and teachers. The girl was about to explode, her hands clasped over her head, her cheeks puffed up, her eyes gleaming with tears of elation as she struggled to hold back all her excitement and exhilaration.

She frantically looked around, watching as MORE trainees rushed towards her. This was getting out of hand. Emora turned tail for a split second, sprinting to a clearer area of the arena as she spun about to continue fighting. The Warden was now visibly winded, fired up, and sweating from both effort and nerves. She watched trainees sprint at her full speed, with no sign of slowing down.

She put her hands out, stopping a trainee in their tracks as she supported their body with her left hand, and crushed the knuckles of her right hand against his gut, shoving him back with her left shortly after. She quickly turned to her right, exhaling sharply as she cracked her knuckles into another trainee's nose, a bit of blood firing out from her nose, despite Emora having pulled the punch back shortly after the strike. Emora didn't have time to tend for wounds, the momentum of the fight was too high already. She'd worry about it after it was all over. The Warden turned over, watching two trainees charge her at roughly the exact same time. She hopped upwards, first firing her left leg out into one trainee's chest, then coming down, holding herself up with the leg she had just used to attack, and show her right leg out against the second's spleen. Both hurtled backwards, collapsing onto the ground shortly after. The Warden panted as her eyes narrowed, her body calling for more freedom as she struggled to control the strength of her blows, as to not hurt the young fighters. She dodged a left cross, which she was briefly impressed at, due to the rarity of such an initial attack from mostly right-handed students. Emora swung her left arm up, upper cutting the trainee up into the air and onto the ground with a bruised jaw.

"_Huh— ah!" _She grunted through a surprised expression as yet another trainee rushed with a right hook, still reeling it back for more power. She took advantage and catapulted her right leg outwards into the trainee's jaw, folding his body back as he collapsed. A second attacker slid forth, trying to take advantage of the fact that Emora had just thrown a kick, and had to take time to recover. However, Emora easily countered this by doing one simple thing: not putting her leg down to recover. She kept her right leg into the air, twisting her body about on her left foot, using the jerk of the motion to plow her right foot into the trainee's ribcage without having to risk getting knocked off balance by recovering from her first kick, and instead just using the same foot for two kicks.

Emora set both of her feet on the ground as she clutched her fists, panting as she looked at the last few remaining trainees. She had fought consistently for about 10 minutes, taking on opponent after opponent after opponent. Thirteen trainees stood before here, among them, Amybeth, the friend of the girl behind the armor stands, who was watching eagerly with the world's brightest grin on her face.

The girl's bright blue eyes were watching the entire time, her throat releasing small sounds of amusement and wonder during the match, taking mental images and videos of maneuvers Emora performed, the girl engraving them into the back of her mind, and replaying the moments over and over in her head. This was truly a dream come true.

However, the girl was getting… a bit _too_ excited. The armor stands she was hiding behind was beginning to shift and move about as the girl rattled and shook it in her uncontrollably enthusiasm, being too enamored by what she was watching to worry about what her own body was doing in response to her jubilation.

Emora watched as the 13 trainees surrounded her. She looked to her left, watching as a few trainees slid towards her. She expected to engage with them, and not a tall, slender trainee with long, powerful legs that stood behind her. Emora let out a yelp as a powerful kick rammed into the center of her back, sending her launching forward, clean off the ground. Everyone watched as Emora hurdled forward, the Warden attempting to recover in midair by using the momentum of the kick to roll her into a front flip. The attempt failed as she landed on her back, rolling forward and tumbling against the dust-covered ground, before finally recovering and sliding to a stop, crouched down on one knee.

Cyrus pumped a fist into the air, cheering out in support of the trainees. He looked at the arena, standing along with the other Alpha Heroes, who were still watching. "Hell yeah! Good hit from behind, kid!" He cheered out with a flashy grin. Airi uncrossed her arms, looking at Emora from afar. Her wife had done great so far, but she understood that she must be getting tired at this point. The Nobushi had a small smile on her face as she cupped her hands around her mouth. "Come on, Emora! Get up!" She shouted over, encouraging for the Warden to keep going, since the blow she had received did not render her unable to continue fighting. The Warden moaned quietly as she stretched her shoulders out a bit, trying to ease the pain she felt on her back. She slowly brought herself to stand as the remaining trainees all glared at her.

"Heh… a solid blow! You used a visual distraction, I locked onto my tunnel vision, and was unable to react to a swift attack from behind!" She'd say, taking a second to look at the tall trainee that had kicked her forward into the ground. "Those long legs served you well! It's clear you know how to use 'em…" She grunted, rubbing her back a bit, or… as much of it as she could, at the very least. The blonde raised her fists as she prepared herself for these last couple fighters. She tried catching her breath, but was interrupted as the attacks ensued.

A left cross came straight at her face, her expression stern with concentration as she dodged swiftly to the right, grasping her attacker's arm and used it to throw the man into the ground, kicking his jaw down afterward. She looked up, gritting her teeth as a second assailant came at her with a back-kick, which was impressive, yes, but not the best for first attacks. Emora dodged under it, before shooting upwards and grasping the leg, twisting it, and turning her body about to bring the person along with her turning, slamming them into the ground harshly they lost their balance. She shot her leg into their gut once they were down, to finish it.

Suddenly, her arms were locked to her chest as a large trainee came up behind her and squeezed her with all his might, trying to take advantage of her thinner frame. Emora thrashed around, panicking as more trainees rushed towards her. She spun around, using her legs and twisting her core to force the man to shift his arms. Emora crept her hand behind the man's back, right above his ass, before jerking her body harshly, forcing him to fall forward as she used the hand she had placed on his backside to shove him forward. She shot her fist downwards, crouching as her knuckles collided with the trainee's face, his nose stunning him on the ground. Emora looked up, panting steadily.

"Ten more of you, come on!" She'd cheer, raising her fists up. She rushed forward this time, deciding to go on the offensive instead of the defensive. The trainee attempted to stop her with a right cross, but she dodged to the side swiftly, coming back around with her elbow, which found itself slamming into the side of the trainee's head, his body collapsing onto its side. Emora watched as another trainee came at her with a spinning hook kick, which was definitely respectable, but the Warden had no time for compliments. She ducked beneath it and hit the trainee with a left hook, which left her staggering back, holding her face. Emora lifted her leg up and thrust it into her stomach, kicking her Sparta-style, directly into the ground, harshly. The Warden looked up, her eyes widening in shock as THREE perfectly coordinated trainees rushed towards her at a blinding speed. Emora, surprised by the teamwork, speed, and avidness of the three, found herself struggling to block three different attacks at the same time.

She hid her head behind her forearms, hunching over a bit to try to make her frame smaller. The tallest trainee shot an overhead punch, which collided heavily with Emora's left forearm. The middle trainee attacked with a powerful right cross, which crashed directly into Emora's right forearm. The lowest blow came from the third trainee, who shot a leg straight into Emora's gut. The Warden's eyes widened a bit as her forearms were pushed back by the heavy force of two powerful punches hitting her guard at the same time, and a kick thrusting into her tensed-up gut. She tried to tank the kick to the stomach, her abs absorbing most of the blow, but air still found itself shooting out from the Warden's mouth as she gritted her teeth with effort, sliding back with stinging forearms, a breathless chest, and a hollowed gut.

"Woah! They're fightin' good, and right when it matters, too! Emora's tired from all the fightin' she's been doin', and it's beginnin' to cost her! Too bad there ain't too many of 'em left in the fight." Said Elea with her loud, spunky voice. The other trainees nodded, Cinder in particular paying extra close attention. "Yes, indeed. Those three delivered an impressively _perfect_ coordinated attack." Cinder replied, his piercing silver eyes narrowing at the battle.

The golden-eyed knight stood there, breathless, as the three trainees continued their attack. She inhaled sharply, leaning into a left-handed gut punch that slammed into one of the trainees, sending them back, wailing in pain. The second trainee came shortly after with a forward kick, which Emora stopped by the ankle, and struggled to push back in time. Because she was unable to block the kick and parry it quickly, the third coordinated attack came in too fast. Emora felt as a left cross struck her right on the right side of her face, smack-dab on the cheekbone. _"Gauh—" _She shouted aloud as her head snapped to the side, her body following short after as she quickly looked back to where the attack had come from, staggering away with now unstable footwork. She let out an exhale as she rubbed her reddened cheek, her teeth grit as she looked at the now seven remaining trainees.

Apollo grinned as he watched Emora from afar, his arms proudly crossed. "That guy hit her hard, good on him. Hell, even I felt that punch connect." He said with a small smile. Cyrus, who was standing next to him, nodded with agreement. Katsue had a hand placed on her chin, analyzing the fight. "It's clear those three trainees that attacked Emora must've been friends of some sort. Their coordinated attack was very impressive, just like Cinder said. It's definitely set some strain onto her…" She commented, her voice smooth and calm. Airi stood, her hands together down below her waist, a hopeful look on her face.

"Almost done, Emora! Don't sputter out here at the end!" The Nobushi yelled over, the Warden hearing her loved one calling to her from the side. She blinked a couple times as she focused back up, slowly raising her fists to continue her guard against the two trainees that she was currently engaged with. The Warden slowly put on a small grin. "Now there's only two of you! Were you three friends? How long did it take you three to plan up that type of coordination?" She'd inquire, looking at the two trainees with a slightly angled head. The trainees exchanged brief glances, before both turning back to Emora.

"We're all from Myrefield, Lady Ryon! The three of us, we're siblings." One of the trainees replied, who briefly looked over to the second, who was peering down at the sister, who Emora had gut punched. The Warden looked down to the sister, who was down on all fours, coughing as she held her stomach. The second brother called out to her, keeping his eyes on Emora, just in case.

"Stay down, Kaede! Yoshio and I will take it from here." Said the second trainee, getting into position in front of Emora. The first brother, who had dealt the punch to Emora's face, stood right next to him, his fists also raised out in front of him.

The sister collapsed onto her side, slowly being helped away by a teacher, to get dragged off to the sidelines. "G-Good luck, Yoshio, Tomohiro…" Moaned the sister with a low, strained voice. The two brothers nodded, facing Emora with narrowed eyes. The Warden stood before them; the other five trainees stood behind the two brothers. The ginger-haired Amybeth stood amongst those five, panicked for her turn to fight.

The girl watched anxiously, her eyes glued to both Emora and Amybeth, her teeth grit tightly together, in anticipation of how the fight was going to go.

Emora watched as the second brother rushed forward, leaving his brother behind as he launched a right cross towards the Warden. She knew these two knew how to work together, so she sidestepped the punch, before snapping her head to the right, facing the first brother, predicting that he was going to attack right before she was able to counter. The Warden shot her right leg out into the first brother's stomach, watching as he gutted out, saliva spurting from his mouth. He staggered back, holding his stomach as he collapsed to one knee, trying to continue fighting. Emora meanwhile used this time to fight the second brother properly, without having the looming threat of another coordinated attack.

The second brother attempted to cuff the Warden a right hook, trying to make up for missing his left cross. He let out a gasp as Emora firmly blocked his punch at the joint of his arm using her forearm. The knight grinned as she snapped her left arm out, knocking his punch aside, and sending her fist into the brother's gut. She quickly brought her arm back, and jabbed his gut a second time with a right punch. The brother hunched over, exposing him even further. Emora punished this by sending a fully fledged uppercut with her left, her knuckles smashing his jaw upwards. The brother staggered back, helpless to do anything as Emora finished him off with a brutal roundhouse kick to the side of the head, which sent him flying to the side, crashing into the ground, unconscious.

She turned back to the first brother, who was panting from the powerful blow to his stomach. He saw that his brother was taken out, and let out a roar of adrenaline as he rushed forward, still a bit slowed by the pain of his injury. He approached with a wound-up right hook, which Emora stepped back from, knocking the fast punch away with her right hand. She watched as he quickly sent out a follow-up left cross, and finally saw a clear opportunity to counter. She ducked beneath the punch, sending her elbow into his ribcage, then chaining the move with a left to his side, and finally, with a third punch from her right straight to his side. The brother staggered back, having been hit three times in the span of a single second. Emora grunted as she fired a left cross into the trainee's nose, the brother grunting out as he was stunned completely.

"Sorry, triplets! It's over!" She'd say to the final brother, sending him flying back into the floor with a left side-kick that crashed into his chest. Emora huffed as she spun over, facing the final five trainees. The Warden was panting lightly, putting her arms out and puffing her chest out.

"I'm all yours!" She'd yell out.

A trainee rushed forward in response to Emora, yelling out with power as he sent forward a right hook that had all his body weight put into it. The Warden put her right arm out to her side as she leaned away, the punch flying right past her head as she forcefully slammed her right wrist into the man's spleen, which caused him to let out a heavy grunt of pain. Emora quickly punched the trainee into the ground with a brutal left cross to his chest.

Katsue clapped her hands aloud, a wide smile on her face. "I taught her that one! Wrist to the side, cross to the chest, they're in a whole new world of pain in that torso!" Giggled the Shinobi, the other Heroes nodding their heads with approving looks, noting that down in their heads.

"Four more…!" She'd say, looking up to the final four trainees. They all stood around her. Amybeth seemed to be… a bit further back than the other three. She stood with her fists ahead of herself, up at tight angles around her head, her legs not to spread apart, her toes aimed forward for the most part. It was a very specific stance. One that the blue-eyed squire girl knew all too well. Amybeth was trying to keep herself calm, while the other three trainees all attacked.

Emora skipped towards one as she launched a right roundhouse kick into one of their heads, the trainee was unfortunately unable to block, as they were in the middle of throwing a left hook. A leg as more range than an arm, and therefore, the trainee's head was forcefully whipped away as he fell back, unconscious. A trainee was right behind Emora, positioned to attack perfectly with a powerful right cross. The Warden used the momentum she had gathered from the roundhouse to turn around and whip right arm outwards in a massive hook punch that connected with the trainee's cheek as they let out an abrupt cry of pain, before slamming into the ground, out cold.

Amybeth was quivering uncontrollably as she watched Emora turn to the final trainee before her, who was a short, small girl who attempted to launch a roundhouse kick with their right leg. Emora easily blocked the kick with her forearm, before using that same arm to slide upwards, her knuckles smashing into her opponent's jaw, harshly knocking her head up, giving Emora a chance to stand up tall, towering over the shorter trainee, put her hands together, and slam them down upon the her head in a sledgehammer maneuver, forcing the girl down into the ground beneath Emora's feet, the trainee's hands reaching up for her aching head as the girl cried out with pain.

Emora turned to the ginger, who was the final trainee standing against her in the arena.

Instructors and teachers helped the wounded trainees away and out of the arena, tending to them using wet rags, bandages, and chunks of ice from the Fortress's icehouses that were wrapped up in thin cloths, for primitive ice packs, methods of the Vikings up north.

The blue-eyed squire couldn't believe her eyes. Her friend, the one who had alerted her of this event going on, was the final one standing against Emora, her top idol. And what made the whole thing worse was that the girl knew exactly why Amybeth had waited to be the last trainee up against the Warden with a heart of pure gold.

All the training they had done together, assisted by someone who was a Warden themselves, older and potentially more experienced than Emora, it gave the two a considerable advantage over the average trainee, who merely took intermediate combat training back in the Academies, and were otherwise left to their own devices when it came to developing martial art prowess, as that part of their training would take place here, at the Barracks.

The squire could barely contain herself. She knew that Amybeth was going to put up a fight, but it killed having to choose who to root for. She bit her bottom lip as she squeezed her hands together, sweat building in her palms as she watched the arena with eyes full of emotion; all types of conflicting, intense emotion.

The Alphas watched closely, the two girls standing a few feet away from one another, both of them in their guards. Apollo huffed, a smug grin on his face. "Well, Emora did it! Sixty motherfuckin' trainees, roughed up and ready for school." Said the Centurion, looking at his fellow Heroes, who nodded along with small chuckles.

"Hey, we never know. This last one might kick her shit in!" Joked Elea, bringing out laughter from the other Alphas. Amybeth heard the laughter and looked over, her hands sweating with nerves as her heart dropped. The Alphas were all looking right at her, and…

Laughing?

The ginger's stomach churned as she slowly began to drop her guard, still looking at the Alphas, who were beginning to quiet down. She immediately assumed the worst and thought that they were all laughing at her. Sure, it didn't seem like them, but… who knew, right? Amybeth's face darkened as her fists unclenched, her arms going limp at her sides as she seemed to shrink, her fellow trainees all looking up at her in silence.

"Guys." Airi spoke in a stern tone, looking right at Amybeth. Apollo, Elea, and Cyrus all quieted down, Alban shaking his head with a cough as the group turned their attention to the arena. Cinder cleared his throat as he peered up, Cindra doing the same as she inhaled some fresh air. Some of the teachers and instructors were looking their way too.

"Oh…" Apollo said, wincing. The other Alphas straightened out, Katsue hiding her face behind her hands as she cringed.

"We just made ourselves look bad." Cinder grunted, looking out to the final trainee. The other Heroes were all straightened out, looking out to the trainee as the instructors and teachers continued to help the trainees that were already out of the arena back onto their feet. Cinder stepped out, walking forward a bit.

"We apologize, for the disruption, everybody! The laughter was merely one of our more… loquacious members speaking their mind and making a snarky comment about our dear Emora, over there." He announced, projecting his voice as he looked over to the Warden. Everyone turned their attention to the Warden, whose cheeks became tinted with a small pink tint as she nervously chuckled, which made a few people chuckle aloud.

Elea was just hitting her own head with her wrist.

Cinder looked to Amybeth, giving her a nod. "Give it your all, young fighter. Emora isn't _that_ tough." He said with a small smirk on his face. Amybeth couldn't help but return the gesture by giving him a smile and nodding, turning back to Emora and curling her hands back into fists.

The Warden looked back to Amybeth, giving her a warm smile. "They like making jokes. Probably one about me fighting in half-inch heels. But hey, we won't talk about that, right?" Joked the golden-eyed knight, letting out a small chuckle afterwards. Amybeth looked down to Emora's feet, before her eyes rose back up to meet hers.

"Even like that, you… did really well… I-it's only a matter of time before I'll be in need of one of those ice packs too..." Amybeth sulked, her heart still in the gutter after potentially being laughed at. Amybeth wasn't really one to fight back against being verbally called out.

She wanted to be a Hero for her father. She looked up to him like nobody else, and wanted to follow in his footsteps and become a Warden. She was strong when she wanted to be, but sometimes struggled to find the strength to do so. Her own insecurities, timid nature, and upbringing from an outer town, Woodbury, sometimes managed to get into her head, and bring her down. The fiery-headed finger wasn't fiery at all. Quite the opposite, really.

Emora saw all of this, taking a second to look at Amybeth with a reassuring gaze. The redhead looked up to Emora, who was only a bit taller than her. She looked into her vibrant golden eyes with her own emerald green colored ones. The Warden dropped her guard a bit, her lips slowly parting to speak. "Hey. Just do your best, okay? All of your other trainees did the same, and I don't want you to be _any_ different. They didn't laugh at you, okay? I can tell they didn't. They're my friends, I know them, and… they wouldn't do something like that." She said in a comforting, gentle voice. The Warden's expression was strong and confident, while Amybeth's was nervous and unnerved.

Emora got back into position. "You look like a strong girl, come on. Give me everything you've got, just like everyone else did. Everyone's looking at you, rooting for you, trying to see what you've got! So show them, girl. Don't you dare hold out on me." Said the Warden, winking at the trainee, before sliding into a new position that faced opposite to Amybeth's.

The young blonde squire held her breath, her hands clutching her chest at her heart's position. The Alphas all watched closely with silent, stern expressions. The trainees and instructors and teachers all turned their attention to watch as well.

All eyes were back on the arena for the final one versus one.

The ginger trainee's heart fluttered as she watched Emora get into position. She lowered herself a bit, shifting her feet into the sandy ground of the arena, her trembling eventually diminishing into a light prance of excitement. She nodded to Emora, gritting her teeth a bit as she let out a shaky exhale.

"I'll give you everything I have,_ Lady Ryon!"_ She yelled out, before rushing forward.

* * *

**Apologies for taking so long to update. Despite being quarantined and stuck inside, schools are NOT letting up on the amount of work they are forcing their students to do. And I'm feeling the brunt of it, for sure. I'll keep on trying to update more frequently in the future. This chapter was long, too, so that also contributes to the time it took to come out. I hope this proves that I haven't lost my touch when it comes to choreographing fight scenes! **

**On a side note, I do hope everyone is doing well in this epidemic that's currently going on. I'll assume that most of my readers live somewhere in the US, where things are pretty bad, so... yeah. Please, be safe, keep yourselves clean and wary of your surroundings when outside, keep some distance from others, and... trust me, I know it's hard, but... try to stay inside, so that this whole thing can hopefully end soon.**

**Stay happy and healthy! 'Till the next one.**


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